History of Spain from 1808 to 1848

### Form of Government

Absolutist (till 1820) then Constitutional Monarchy under the Bourbon-Anjou Dynasty

### Leader

Monarchs:* Ferdinand VII 1808-1823
* Ferdinand VIII 1823-1842 under regency of Maria Amalia of Bourbon-Sicily
* Alfonso XII 1842-1848 under the regency of Maria Theresa of Austria-Teschen
* other main figures
* Francisco Espoz y Mina
* Infante Carlos (1788-1855)
* Baldomero Espartero
* Ramón María Narváez

### Prime Minister

Several, main figures:* Baldomero Espartero

### Legislature

Cortes

The first half of the XIX century in Spain saw the destruction of its empire as well as a series of monarchs that died relatively young. Civil unrest, civil war and the continuous presence of Espadones or militants in daily life and politics saw a period of conflictivity and disengagement from the general public. The economic transformations throughout the century included the privatisation of communal municipal lands—not interrupted but actually intensified and legitimised during the Desamortizaciones—as well as the confiscation of Church properties, which created conflict between the Moderado and Progresista factions of the Liberal Party. The perceived inaction of the monarchy and old elites to alliviate the general social unrest would lead to a series of revolutionary movements throughout the country that would topple the monarchy and end up with the proclamation of the National Comitee

## Reign of Ferdinand VII

-main article: Reign of Ferdinand VII-

The Reign of Ferdinand VII of Spain occured from 1808 to his early death in 1823. Brought upon by a popular uprising in 1808, he became head of state in Spain after making his father Charles IV abdicate. This in turn would lead to a series of events that caused the independence of Spanish-America down the line. Ferdinand’s reign would be marked by an initial gleam of hope for Spanish liberalism, for it was believed the new monarch would prove to be more level-headed and manageable

than his father Charles and the latter’s valido Manuel Godoy, and thus more open for reforms. However, these attempts would soon prove futile, as despite the efforts from many politicians, he proved to be as stubbornly clinging onto his absolute power as his father. He would be succeeded by his son and heir Ferdinand VIII.

## Tumult of Aranjuez and coming to power

Before the mutiny, Charles IV's *valido*, or prime minister, Manuel de Godoy, a former member of the Royal Guard, had become unpopular among both the nobles and the Spanish people. The first resented how Godoy had attained power even though he was born in poverty and obscurity. Most notable among them was the King's own son Ferdinand, who had led the El Escorial Conspiracy a few months earlier. The people were upset about Godoy's ambitious nature, his flirting with many women of the court and his willingness to have Catholic Spain make treaties with atheist Revolutionary France against Christian (though Anglican) Great Britain. The latter also blamed him for the economic crisis affecting the country, which was heightened after Spain lost its navy in the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. This had impaired trade with the United States, causing food shortages and affecting industrial production.

In addition, under the terms of the Treaty of Fontainebleau, the King and Godoy had allowed French Emperor Napoleon's troops to cross Spain to attack Portugal. This move was extremely unpopular with the Spanish people, who saw the entry as a humiliating invasion, which it soon became. French troops rapidly occupied the important cities of San Sebastián, Pamplona, and Barcelona, fuelling Spanish resentment towards Godoy.

## Mutiny

The uprising took place on 17 March 1808 in Aranjuez, about 48 kilometres (30 mi) south of Madrid, where the royal family and the government were staying while on their way south, anticipating a French invasion from the north. Soldiers, peasants, and members of the general public assaulted Godoy's quarters and tried to capture him. The mutineers made King Charles dismiss Godoy, and, two days later, the court forced the King himself to abdicate in favor of his son and rival, who became King Ferdinand VII.

But Godoy wasn’t captured, he was alive and well. After hiding in the countryside, he managed to hide in a home in Alcalá de Henares, wherein he intercepted the carriage with Charles IV directed to Bayonne. Napoleon had wanted to use the opportunity to stike gold and take the Spanish throne by summoning both son and father (the ex-king) to a castle in Bayonne. For this, he had ordered Joachim Murat to ensure the former king’s passing through the Pyrinees. However, Godoy intercepted with the monarchs and pleaded with them to escape, thinking that Bonaparte would just use him as a political pawn against Ferdinand. He knew the Spanish people and the new king were out for his blood, so he tried to convince Charles to escape following the old Bourbon B-plan to go to Mexico in case of a French expansion. As Charles pondered, feigning declining health to stall Bonaparte, the actions of the Revolts of 12 April 1808 turned him away from the French emperor that had taken over his reign a mere months ago, and he decided to go ahead (insisted upon by his wife Maria Luisa of Parma). As the King made a run for it going to Zaragoza before turning to Barcelona and from then to Cadiz and Mexico.

Ferdinand, on his way to Bayonne himself to plead with Bonaparte to recognize him and unaware that his father hadn’t even made it there, decided to settle for going back to Madrid to calm down the population, also fearful that his father would try to take over the city and start a civil war. Instead, he send his uncle Infante Antonio to talk to the emperor in Bayonne. The latter’s plan flustered, he decided to bedgruginly accept Ferdinand in exchange for some commercial concessions and military agreements.

## First years of his reign 1808-1815

The first major problem Ferdinand faced was the continuation of the North being occupied by the French, and several guerrillas trying to fight the French invading forces. Ferdinand was eager to distance himself from the politics of Godoy, and so he asked the French emperor to take the troops out of the kingdom. The latter Congress of Erfurt, wherein the Spanish threatened to go to war for Mexico but were discouraged by the aggrement of both France and Britain, saw the French accepting to leave most of the region save a couple of cities like Bilbao or Barcelona, mostly to ensure Spanish compliance with French dictated policies. The congress also ended with the Spanish claim for Sicilian independence being recognized by all Great Powers, and in order to secure good relations and fidelty with them, he married his late’s wife sister, Maria Amalia. The guerrillas continued in several areas of the Maestrazgo and Vascongadas regions until the French eventually left altogether in 1814.

Ferdinand started his reign under the advise of the Duke of El Infantado and his uncle Infante Antonio. Representing a court both reactionary yet somewhat open to liberalism, the King himself was full of contradictions. He seemed enthusiastically aware of his royal power and predicament yet very uninterested in the actual governing, something he shared in common with his antecessor. He also was furious with the escape of his father, and completely disgusted at the revolutionary movements in America, yet very remorseful at his treachery and completely uneager to take any firm action to stop the wars. A lot of money, resources and men were sent to the Americas, only to end up losing most of them.

The royal family drama were only starting. Initially Charle’s plan was to escape to Ciudad de México with the intention of setting up a rival court wherefrom govern as the legitimate emperor of Spain. As such, he decreed that the Spanish territories and Audiencias were to declare loyalty to him. Several mestizo and criollo governments in the Americas took this chance to start the process of independence and as such declared Charles as their ligitimate monarch, instead of Fernando. Moreover, any kind of hope for a pollitical reconciliation was lost upon the recognition by Charles IV of his last son (Francisco de Paula de Borbón) as heir of the Mexican throne, and subsecuently as Emperor of Mexico. Both Ferdinand and Carlos María were looked over and this translated into animosity. Many of the members of the royal family were made to chose sides. For instance, the queen consort of the late Kingdom of Etruria had been one of the most ardent supporters of her father at court before Aranjuez, and so when Ferdinand negotiated with Napoleon the initial plans to give her a kingdom in Porto called Lusitania, but Napoleon instead offered the island of Elba, wherein he knew the queen could be contained. Ferdinand refused but this was taken by the former Queen regent as an affront and an attempt by his brother to punish her. Thus, she negotiated with General Belgrano of the Argentine junta to have her son crowned as king Carlos I of Argentina.

### Valido-ship of the Duke of El Infantado

Pedro de Alcántara Álvarez de Toledo became the un-offical court valido after Ferdinand decided to keep on living the bachelor lifestyle he was accostumed to. The Duke’s government decided inmediately to cut all unnecesary ties with the French and focus on trying to win back the Americas. Nontheless, the independence movement had already begun and, much to their chagrin, there was nothing they could do. It possibly didn’t help that they alienated both the British and the French, whose subsequent battle for influence over America proved partially the reason for the Empire’s undoing.

As a consequence of the revolutionary movdements within the Americas, commerce dropped so much it caused deflation. This translated in poverty on the rise and malnourishment. the Duke of El Infantado tried by all means to alliviate the crisis, but it only grew worse. Attempts to reform Tax-collection were also blocked by the Higher Nobility and the Clergy.

The motín of Aranjuez had been in all but name a court complot, but amidst the romantic atmosphere of the time it started to be remembered as a popular uprising, inspired by those like the Esquilache Tumult of 1766. Thus, many revolutionaries of a liberal mind started to fantasize about taking the reins of government and forcing the reform by military means. This was the case of Juan Díaz Porlier, who attempted the first of these “pronunciamientos” in 1815. This was however unsuccesful, but it led to several of the more liberal-minded courtiers to start flirting with the idea of a liberal revolution. Eventually the liberal movement centered around the idea of Miguel José de Azanza Alegría, former Viceroy of the New Spain. Also centered were the figures of Agustín Argüelles and the Count of Toreno. Finally, in 1817 a revolutionary pronunciamiento started in Cartagena led by Juan van Haren and Sartí. This revolt was however unsucessful and most of its leaders imprisioned. Most liberals were then forced out of the country by the government, who spent the next couple of years putting down revolutionary attempt after revolutionary attempt.

## Levantamiento de Riego

Rafael de Riego was a soldier and brigadier of Asturian origin. In 1819, the King was forming an army of ten battalions to fight in the Spanish American wars of independence. Riego was given command of the AsturianBattalion. After arriving in Cádiz, together with other liberal officers, he started a mutiny on 1 January 1820, demanding the return of the liberals and a formal Constitution (reminder up until then Spain had absolutely always been an absolute paternalistic monarchy).

Riego's troops marched through the cities of Andalusia with the hope of starting an anti-absolutist uprising, but the local population was mostly indifferent. An uprising, however, took place in Galicia, and it quickly spread throughout Spain. On 7 March 1820, the royal palace in Madrid was surrounded by soldiers under the command of General Francisco Ballesteros, and on 10 March, the King agreed to install a Constitution. Despite the rebels' relative weakness, Ferdinand accepted the constitution on 9 March 1820, granting power to liberal ministers and ushering in a period of liberal rule. However, many political conspiracies of both right and left proliferated in Spain, as was the case across much of the rest of Europe.

A constitution was approved by the government, and created by many liberal deputies. The revolution was inspired by the Napoleonic code and started one of the more Liberal regimes in the country. The revolutionaries stormed the King's palace and seized Ferdinand VII, who was a prisoner of the Cortes in all but name for the next four years and retired to Aranjuez. The elections to the Cortes Generales in 1822 were won by Rafael del Riego. Ferdinand's supporters set themselves up at Urgell, took up arms and put in place an absolutist regency, the Urgel Regency.

Ferdinand's supporters, accompanied by the Royal Guard, staged an uprising in Madrid that was subdued by forces supporting the new government and its constitution. Despite the defeat of Ferdinand's supporters at Madrid, civil war erupted in the regions of Castile, Toledo, and Andalusia.

Four years of liberal rule followed. The Progresista government reorganized Spain into 52 provinces, and it intended to reduce the regional autonomy that had been a hallmark of Spanish bureaucracy since Habsburg rule in the 16th and 17th centuries. Opposition of the affected regions, in particular, Aragon, Navarre, and Catalonia, shared in the king's antipathy for the liberal government. The anticlerical policies of the Progresista government led to friction with the Catholic Church, and attempts to bring about industrialisation alienated old trade guilds. The Spanish Inquisition was ended by the government, which led to accusations of it being nothing more than *afrancesados* (francophiles), who, only six years earlier, had been forced out of the country.

More radical liberals attempted to revolt against the entire idea of a monarchy, regardless of how little power it had. In 1821, they were suppressed, but the incident served to illustrate the frail coalition that bound the government together. The election of a radical liberal government in 1823 further destabilized Spain. The army, whose liberal leanings had brought the government to power, began to waver when the Spanish economy failed to improve, and in 1823, a mutiny in Madrid had to be suppressed. The Jesuits, who had been banned by Charles III in the 18th century, only to be rehabilitated by Ferdinand VII after his coming to power, were banned again by the government. For the duration of liberal rule, Ferdinand (still technically head of state) lived under virtual house arrest in Madrid.

Regarding the policy for America in the absolutist period, the new government changed political repression into negotiation. Sending troops was replaced by commissioners to attract pro-independence leaders, who were invited to submit to royal authority in exchange for recognition by Spain. With that in mind, the government announced a ceasefire for negotiations with the rebels until the Constitution, which ironically, had been superseded by Ferdinand's actions, was accepted.

According to the ceasefire, Spain would end the persecution and would issue a blanket amnesty for the insurgents; otherwise, the war would continue. The 11 commissioners failed, since the patriots demanded recognition of their independence from Spain. The death of Charles IV and the refusal of new king Francis I to accept Spanish suzerainity and later proclaiming himself Emperador de Mexico, finally severed all atempts of reuniting the Empire.

## Civil War and death of Ferdinand VII

The new revolutionary government that was introduced in 1821 formed a liberal Cortes that were mostly held by liberal radicals or Exaltados. They initiated swift reforms in order to start modernizing the Spanish state. San Miguel was chosen as the new head of government.

The absolutits immediately accused these revolutionaries of masonry and anticlericalism in order to alienate them from the traditionalist and completely ignorant lower classes. The Regency of Urgell was set up by the Marquis of Mataflorida and started to conspire against the Cortes in Madrid. Infante Carlos secretly became the leading figure of the Regency at Court.

The beginning of the Spanish democracy saw a lot of enemies from all sides, as well as internal infighting. The exaltados and the moderados became the first scions of the Liberal Party. The firsts were the more radical part, aiming for a large voting population (albeit only partaking the higher strata of the population). They were mainly supported by the small Spanish middle class, the liberal intelligentsia and some part of the army. Then, the moderates or moderados were supported by the non-aristocratic higher class, some parts of the aristocracy and the liberals that wanted to reform Spain but not all the way through. They were the pollitical descendants of Jovellanos. Finally, the conservative nobility and the clergy were traditionalists who tried to persuade the lower classes of the dangers of liberalism.

On July 1822, the King attempted a counterevolution in the Royal Palace. For over a week, his forces and those of the Milicia Nacional fought only for the former to be defeated. Afterwards, the moderate government of Martínez de la Rosa was let off and substituted by the exaltado government of the Duke of San Miguel. San Miguel decided to “pardon” the “lapse in judgement” of the king just so that he would not be forced into martyrdom by the traditionalists. This “treason” on behalf of the king made the first stepts towards the Spanish Republican Party.

The defeat in July led towards the creation of the regency of Urgell and the Northern Part of the country started to submerge into anarchy. Extraordinary Cortes were convened on October 1822 and among other policies they decided to declare the state of war in Catalonia. The war carried onto winter of 1823, but it ended with a Liberal victory, who took Urgell in August. By January, the last regions of the rebels were taken over at Irati and then they were pushed into the Pyrinees.

Afterwards, there was an attempt at taking over Madrid by the realists after taking Guadalajara, but they were definately defeated by the liberals. Since then, the traditionalists mostly exiled themselves, were detained or simply gave up. Ferdinand was adamant there was a general anemsty for the counterevolutionaries. By then, the wave of European revolutions was dying down. However, the problem was that the Austrians and French were quarrelling over whether or not to intervene on the Italian Peninsula. Thus, when the Spanish tried asking the French for an intervention, the Austrians refused and vice versa.

Thus, the Spanish liberal government under San Miguel survived. The war saw the exile of a lot of conservatives, some heretofore influential members at Court. Among others, the Duke of El Infantado was forced to exile himself to Vienna and, later, Rome. In fact, many of these exilees decided to settle on the Papal city because it was considered to be the more conservative Catholic court in Europe at the time. This coupled with the increasing anti-clericalism in Spain saw the beginning of the Spanish-Rome rift, which would translate in the Papacy backing the conservative Traditionalists uprisings in Spain and the Americas. Even the Infante Carlos, one of the remaining members of the royal family, decided to set onto a self-imposed exile at La Granja de San Ildefonso.

Ferdinand was a man who came from an inbred family, was prone to eating, suffered from obesity and the last couple of years had taken a very strong toll on both his demeanor and his health. He had aged rapidly and was very sick all the time. It is said that after the news of the defeat at Irati, he fell ill and never completely recovered again. He recovered a little bit at the beginning of summer 1823, only to completely fall again sick again later that year. He died the 29th September 1823, at the age of 38.

## Reign of Ferdinand VIII 1823-1842

Ferdinand VIII of Spain (Spanish:Fernando VIII de España) was king of Spain from 1823 to his early death in 1842. **The second in a successive line of Spanish monarchs to die relatively young,** his reign saw a series of conflicts among the conservative Traditionalist parties and the liberal Progresista party.

## Reign under regency 1823-1828

### Setting up the regency and the War in Albarracín

At the young age of 13, the king was in no way fit to rule. Thus San Miguel decided to persuade Queen dowager Amalia (herself uninterested in politics) to hand power over to a court’s appointed regent. This sparked the rage of Infante Carlos, who up until that point had been living in a self-imposed exile at San Ildefonso. He didn’t oppose the reign of his nephew, but he was wary of the political “manipulation” he perceived the liberals would play in the young king’s government. Thus, he perceived the political scene to be unfavourable to his persona, and set off to the countryside again.

The first years were full of political machination. San Miguel appointed Espoz y Mina as the semi-official co-regent, aiding Queen mother Amalia. Soon enough, major conflict erupted both within and outside the court. On August 15th, 1825 at Brihuega, Guadalajara, Jorge Bessières revolted against the national government and declared his support for the cause of Carlos as regent/king of Spain. Then, Joaquín Capapé revolted in Teruel with the backing of governor José Puertolas and both revolting militias started to fight guerrilla style in the Jiloca-Alto Tajo Comarcas.

San Miguel mistakenly sent Carlos Comte d’Espagnac (of suspected ultraroyalist influence) to quell the rebellion but instead him and his 3000 men went and joined the rebellion. After then they took the Albarracín Range and thus set their official countergovernment of ultra-royalist governance and they recognized Infante Carlos as the official “General Liutenant of Spain” (as opposed to outright declaring him King/Regent.

San Miguel swiftly decided to keep infante Carlos in house arrest, in a move that antagonized the majority of the conservatives that were only luke-warm to the rebellion in Albarracín. In between march and october 1827 there were uprisings in Andalucía, Aragón, the Basque Country, València and, specially, in Catalonia were it took the form of its own war against the central government in Barcelona/Madrid and was called Guerra dels Malscontents. Several historians have called this the first proto-Traditionalist war. On February 2nd Carlos d’Espagnac, who had travelled to meet with the Catalonian rebels, was assassinated and then on August Bessières was killed in a skirmish. Finally, the central government managed to quell the rebellion elsewhere, and in Albarracín they were defeated at the Battle of Molina de Aragón.

### San Miguel falling from grace and the ending of the regency

The war of 1825-27 left the interior part of the country in and around Teruel very desolated. Furthermore, it left the royal family even more fragmented (Carlos was at San Ildefonso on house arrest, Maria Amalia was “under the influence of the Negros (liberals)” and was characterized by her trust in San Miguel and then the rest of the children of Carlos IV had all left Spain or were dead) and it left the same San Miguel in a difficult position. He was hated on by the conservatives and his government was seen as too despotic by many liberals. Once a progresista, he was effectively becoming more and more moderated (moderado).

The young king on his part had been trusted to the care of Espoz y Mina, who instilled upon him the most liberal principles. Thus, on his 18th birthday he immediately set upon changing the ruling government. He was the more Progresista member of the young royal family and since his coming of age meant that the Queen mother retired from politics, San Miguel’s days were numbered. The king convened new Cortes that favoured the conservatives and moderados, meaning that both the Progresistas and the king felt unjustly left out.

## Early reign, San Torrijo’s Gibraltarada and the First Traditionalist War 1828-1840

During the first three years, the king and the Cortes fought time and time again and the king tried as hard as he could to exclude the more conservative components of the courts, which in turn alienated some of the land-owning higher strata. His anticlerical stances also made for the first time the church antagonized against the royal family. Ferdinand urged the Progresistas to demand political reform and furthermore the conservative (now called Tradicionalistas or Traditionalists) became the more isolated form the main political discussions.

Then, on December 2nd 1831, General José María de Torrijos y Uriarte (exiled on orders of San Miguel) took inspiration from the July Revolution in France and set off from Gibraltar and landed in Málaga, wherein he demanded political reform and a “Liberal regeneration”. He received support from Espoz y Mina and other liberals like Antonio Alcalá Galiano and more. Pronunciamientos followed suit in Loja (led by Ramón María Narváez), Galicia and Soria. The king, whilst not overtly, did privately welcome the liberal reform.

The Gibraltarada as it became known culminated in the dissolution of the Cortes and the proclamation of a new constitution, the first since 1820. The new constitution of 1832, proclaimed later into the year was of an exceedingly Progresista style. Its principal legacy was to restore the most progressive features of the Spanish Constitution of 1820 and to entrench the concepts of constitutionalism, parliamentarism, and Progresista separation of powers in Spain. It did, however, have a major flaw, as it gave the King the ability to both vetoe legislation and appoint the President of the Council of Ministers. This was seen as important at the time as it allowed for the Progresista king to partake in decision making and make Progresistas the leaders of Government. However, later under the regency of his spouse Queen María Teresa it would give the Moderados extended powers.

The Constitution proved once again too much for the Conservatives to handle. On the night from the 13th to the 14th of September 1832, several conservative politicians, among others Francisco Calomarde, conspired to support the ultra-royalist Count of Alcudia to break Infante Carlos free from his prison at San Ildefonso. The infante was made to believe that his nephew, young and inexperienced, was being manipulated by the Progresistas and that furthermore, they wanted to publicly put him on trial for his supposed implications with the conflict in the Albarracín, ending in a desire to execute him to assure their staying on the throne. Infante Carlos was mortified and agreed to them breaking out, then being sneaked out of the country to London, wherein his son Infante Carlos Luis would rest before being sent off to his maternal family in Brazil. King Fernando VIII would see this as treachery and strip the infante and his son of all of their titles.

Then, over a year later and with apparent support in Castilla la Vieja, Extremadura and Andalucía, Infante Carlos would come back again and land in Cantabria, where he would proclaim the Santander Manifesto, declaring his nephew unfit to rule and urging the Spanish people to accept him as supreme lieutenant of the Spanish Kingdom in quality of regent of the official traditions and institutions of the Royal country.

### First Traditionalist War 1833-1840

Thus started the first Traditionalist war, fought between two factions over the succession to the throne and the nature of the Spanish monarchy: The conservative and devolutionist supporters of the late king's brother, Carlos de Borbón (or *Carlos V*), became known as Carlists (*carlistas*), while the progressive and centralist supporters of the king Fernando were called Liberals (*liberales*) or *fernandinos.* It is considered by some authors to be the largest and most deadly civil war of the period.

The main Traditionalist forces were split in three geographically distinct armies where Carlist support was strongest: 'North', 'Maestrazgo', and 'Catalonia', which by and large operated independently from each other. Several independent, but nominally Carlist bands also waged a guerrilla war in mountain areas as far south as La Mancha and Andalusia, but were derided as *bandoleros* (bandits) by the Fernandino liberal government. Traditionalists' goal was the return to a traditional monarchy, while the Liberals sought to defend the constitutional monarchy. Portugal, France and the United Kingdom supported the Fernandinos and sent volunteer and even regular forces to confront the Carlist army.

Both sides raised special troops during the war. The Liberal side formed the volunteer Basque units known as the Chapelgorris, while Tomás de Zumalacárregui created the special units known as aduaneros. Zumalacárregui also established the unit known as Guías de Navarra from Liberal troops from La Mancha, Valencia, Andalusia and other places who had been taken prisoner at the Battle of Alsasua (1834). After this battle, they had been faced with the choice of joining the Traditionalist troops or being executed.

The war attracted independent adventurers, such as the Briton C. F. Henningsen, who served as Zumalacárregui's chief bodyguard (and later was his biographer), and Martín Zurbano, a *contrabandista* or smuggler. About 250 foreign volunteers fought for the Carlists; the majority were French monarchists, but they were joined by men from Portugal, Britain, Belgium, Piedmont-Sardinia, and the German states. Friedrich, Prince of Schwarzenberg fought for the Carlists, and had taken part in the French conquest of Algeria and the Swiss civil war of the Sonderbund.

The Liberal generals, such as Vicente Genaro de Quesada and Marcelino de Oraá Lecumberri, were often veterans of the wars resulting from independence movements in South America. For instance, Jerónimo Valdés participated in the battle of Ayacucho (1824).

Both sides executed prisoners of war by firing squad; the most notorious incident occurred at Heredia, when 118 Liberal prisoners were executed by order of Zumalacárregui. The British attempted to intervene, and through Lord Eliot, the Lord Eliot Convention was signed on April 27–28, 1835.

### Northern front

The war was long and hard, and the Carlist forces achieved important victories in the north under the direction of the brilliant general Tomás de Zumalacárregui. The Basque commander swore an oath to uphold home rule in Navarre (*fueros*), subsequently being proclaimed commander in chief of Navarre. The Basque regional governments of Biscay, Álava, and Gipuzkoa followed suit by pledging obedience to Zumalacárregui. He took to the bush in the Amescoas (to become the Carlist headquarters, next to Estella-Lizarra), there making himself strong and avoiding the harassment of the Spanish forces loyal to Ferdinand VIII. 3,000 volunteers with no resources came to swell his forces.

In summer 1834, Liberal forces set fire to the Sanctuary of Arantzazu and a convent of Bera, while Zumalacárregui showed his toughest side when he had volunteers refusing to advance over Etxarri-Aranatzexecuted. The Carlist cavalry engaged and defeated in Viana an army sent from Madrid (14 September 1834), while Zumalacárregui's forces descended from the Basque Mountains over the Álavan Plains (Vitoria), and prevailed over general Manuel O'Doyle. The veteran general Espoz y Mina, a Liberal Navarrese commander, attempted to drive a wedge between the Carlist northern and southern forces, but Zumalacárregui's army managed to hold them back (late 1834). This cemented the overt support from the Catholic Church for the Traditionalist cause. This blatant disrespect to the Church led to another proclamation where Charles proclaimed himself king of Spain as Carlos V, as he saw his brother’s line as “too rotten by the Negro’s principles.”

In January 1835, the Carlists took over Baztan in an operation where the general Espoz y Mina narrowly escaped a severe defeat and capture, while the local Liberal Gaspar de Jauregi *Artzaia* ('the Shepherd') and his *chapelgorris* were neutralized in Zumarraga and Urretxu. By May 1835, virtually all Gipuzkoa and seigneury of Biscay were in Carlist hands. Opposing his advisers and Zumalacárregui's plan, Carlos V decided to conquer Bilbao, defended by the Royal Navy and the British Auxiliary Legion. With such an important city in his power, the Prussian or Russian Tsarist banks would give him credit to win the war; one of the most important problems for Carlos was a lack of funds.

In the siege of Bilbao, Zumalacárregui was wounded in the leg by a stray bullet. The wound was not serious, he was treated by a number of doctors, famously by Petrikillo (nowadays meaning in Basque 'quack' or 'dodgy healer'). The relationship of the pretender to the throne and the commander in chief was at least distant; not only had they differed in operative strategy, but Zumalacárregui's popularity could undermine Carlos's own authority, as in the early stages of the war, the Basque general was offered the crown of Navarre and the lordship of Biscay as king of the Basques. The injury did not heal properly, and finally General Zumalacárregui died on June 25, 1835. Many historians believe the circumstances of his death were suspicious, and have noted that the general had many enemies in the Carlist court; however, to date no further light has been shed on this point.

In the European theatre, all the great powers backed the Isabeline army, as many British observers wrote in their reports. Meanwhile, in the east, Carlist general Ramón Cabrera held the initiative in the war, but his forces were too few to achieve a decisive victory over the Liberal forces loyal to Madrid. In 1837, the Carlist effort culminated in the Royal Expedition, which reached the walls of Madrid, but subsequently retreated after the Battle of Aranzueque.

### Southern front

In the south, the Carlist general Miguel Gómez Damas attempted to establish a strong position there for the Carlists, and he left Ronda on November 18, 1836, entering Algeciras on November 22. But, after Gómez Damas departed from Algeciras, he was defeated by Ramón María Narváez y Campos at the Battle of Majaceite. An English commentator wrote that "it was at Majaciete that [Narváez] rescued Andalucía from the Carlist invasion by a brilliant *coup de main*, in a rapid but destructive action, which will not readily be effaced from the memory of the southern provinces."

Ramon Cabrera had collaborated with Gómez Damas in the expedition of Andalusia where, after defeating the Liberals, he occupied Córdoba and Extremadura. He was pushed out after his defeat at Villarrobledo in 1836.

### End

After the death of Zumalacárregui in 1835, the Liberals slowly regained the initiative but were not able to win the war in the Basque districts until 1839. They failed to recover the Carlist fortress of Morella and suffered a defeat at the Battle of Maella (1838).

The war effort had taken a heavy toll on Basque economy and regional public finances with a population shaken by a myriad of war related plights—human losses, poverty, disease—and tired with Carlos's own absolutist ambitions and disregard for their self-government. The moderate Jose Antonio Muñagorri negotiated as of 1838 a treaty in Madrid to put an end to war ("Peace and Fueros") leading to the Embrace of Bergara (also Vergara), ratified by Basque moderate liberals and disaffected Carlists across all the main cities and countryside.

The war in the Basque Country ended with the *Convenio de Bergara*, also known as the *Abrazo de Bergara* ("the Embrace of Vergara", *Bergara* in Basque) on 31 August 1839, between the Liberal general Baldomero Espartero, Count of Luchana and the Carlist General Rafael Maroto. Some authors have written that General Maroto was a traitor who forced Carlos to accept the peace with little focus as to the precise context in the Basque Country.

In the east, General Cabrera continued fighting, but when Espartero conquered Morella and Cabrera in Catalonia (30 May 1840), the fate of the Carlists was sealed. Espartero progressed to Berga, and by mid-July 1840 the Carlist troops had to flee to France.

### Madrid policies during the conflict

Taking the opportunity, the Cortes completely depurated themselves off of Absolutists, meaning that the remaining officials were either Progre or Moderados. However, in a gesture of appeasement, king Ferdinand decided to call into government a semi-moderado coalition led by Francisco Martínez de la Rosa y Cornejo, under whose government Javier de Burgos drafted and published a re-organization of Spain into new provinces and regions.

### 1835 Revolution and Mendizábal Government

However both the king and the Progresistas rested unsatisfied with the government. Torrijos, who had been president of the council since the Gibraltarada, was opposed to the measures of Martínez de la Rosa. Thus, they started to instigate the general population to revolt against the Cortes like htey did back in 1808. Soon enough a Cholera epidemic broke out in Madrid that made the general public (already uneasy about the general economy depression and the war) riot through the streets, blaming among others the Church. This anticlericalism would fuel the Spanish relations with the Church for several years.

Thus, under José María Queipo de Llano's presidency, Mendizábal was appointed Minister of the Treasury. On 14 September he succeeded Queipo de Llano, keeping the Treasury portfolio during a delicate economic situation due to the Traditionalists War's military expenses. Fernando VIII thought a liberal prime minister would hold the rebellions. Mendizábal's political program included the *Desamortización Eclesiástica*("Ecclesiastical Confiscations of Mendizábal"), the immediate end to the Traditionalist war and the elimination of the public debt.

The Liberal movement, Fernando and Mendizábal were supported by the new owners of the confiscated properties, though the measures only benefited the big land tycoons. The impossibility of ending the Traditionalist revolts forced Mendizábal's resignation in 1836. Mendizábal was later appointed Minister of Finance and a series of revolutionary measures were taken: the abolition of titles and *señoríos*, freedom of the press, confiscation of the Church properties). In 1837 a more moderate government was elected. Mendizábal was again appointed Minister of Finance in 1843 but had to go in exile again when the moderates came back to power.

The “Desamortizaciones” would sever relations with the Holy See as most of the confiscated properties were part of the Church and thusly their power was severely diminished. However this first official Progresista government had a major flaw in their policies. The desamortizaciones would create a new land owning elite that whilst dynastically aligned with Ferdinand, would still ideologically be moderated. That same year, in 1837, 27 year old Fernando would marry 21 year old Archduchess Maria Theresa of Austria-Teschen who belonged to a prestigious yet conservative branch of the already famously conservative Hasburg Empire.

## Changing governments and the King’s death 1837-1842

However, popular demand eventually led to new elections which were born yet-again by the Moderados. Although the king had the power to overule the government and call into another Progresista one, he was adviced mainly by his mother not to do so as it would paradoxically give ammunition to the absolutist cause. As such, succeeding Espartero, Eusebio Bajarí Azara became the first in a series of Moderado Prime Ministers to take over the ruling of the country. Ministers would try to help with the Treasury but unfortunately none would be able to placate the exorbitant public debt.

Pérez de Castro (38-40) would go behind the monarch’s back and authorize a new election law that would affect the size of the electoral districts in a move that would favour the Moderados, and with the support of Queen Mother Maria Amalia. This move would prove too much again for the Progresistas and the king would once again call off the government and after a couple of failed compromise ministries would finally call on the Progresista national heroe Baldomero Espartero to govern.

### Espartero’s government, the coup of 1841 and the king’s death

Espartero came into power in 1840 amidst some national chaos. Furthermore, although it was initially thought that the Spanish political system would be controlled and pacified by a popular figure as Espartero, soon the Progresista party would collapse and divide itself in two different branches, the Ayacuchos (allies of Espartero himself) and the Anti-Ayacuchos. The Ayacuchos formed a small elite that was personally favoured by the Prime Minister as well as the monarch, who was vehemently in favour of Espartero whom he saw as a national heroe (some sources suggest he might have even held him as a sort of parental figure, but this is debated).

Then in 1841 Leopoldo O’Donnell instigated a popular revolt in Pamplona, keen on bringing down Espartero. The coup would diver from there and some espadones thought that the appropiate course of actions would be to officially depose king Fernando (who was seen as too political) and instill the young Prince of Asturias under a Moderado regency. Under this idea they would first enter the royal palace and kidnap the young princes. Thus they entered on the night of October the 4th 1841 Diego de León and Manuel de La Concha e Irigoyen, but were aprehended. The coup was a fiasco but it loosen the grip the central government had on the general country. In Barcelona the Progresista militia took a form of its own and brought down the Fortalesa de la Ciutadella. The Republican movement grew in popularity throughout the country, specially among the lower classes, as did the worker’s movement.

Amidst all this political chaos, in July 1842, King Ferdinand was scheduled to leave for Alcalá to review part of the army which was to be sent to crush the rebellion in Barcelona. He planned to travel from the Royal Palace on 13 July 1842 to say goodbye to his family, and, for the sake of expediency, opted for an open carriage. When the horses of his carriage ran out of control at a certain point in the route, he lost his balance and fractured his skull, and, despite the best attentions of his doctors, the 31-year-old monarch died some hours later, surrounded by family members who had rushed to the scene.

There was at the time some people who thought the falling was too suspicious, and the death of the monarch definately benefitiated certain poiliticians and the like, however, the general consensus seems to be that the king unfortunately died accidentally in a very precarious moment for the Spanish monarchy. He was interred at El Escorial and was suceeded by his son, Alfonso XII.

## First reign of Alfonso XII 1842-1848

-main article: Alfonso XII of Spain-

Alfonso XII was the first of the three kids born to Ferdinand VIII and Maria Theresa. Barely 3 years of age at the time of his ascension, his reign promised to be fractured from the start. To begin with, the matter of who was to be the young king’s regent was formulated into a question of vital national importance. The late king had had a plethora of brothers, the youngest of which was already 18, but tradition dictated that the regent ought to be the now queen mother Maria Theresa. At the same time, many progresistas argued that the last time this had been the case, that of the regency of Maria Amalia, the Moderados had taken control.

### The Espartero-Infante Felipe regency 1842-1843

However, another issue arose. Espartero and his Ayacuchos favoured the figure of infante Phillip of Spain (1814-1896) who was not only a man (and according to their contemporary view more suited to be regent) but also a veteran of the Traditionalist wars and a personal friend and confidante of the same Espartero.

This move was seen as way too despotic by the anti-Ayacuchos and combined with the execution of Pérez de León, it served to put the majority of the Spanish political spectrum against Espartero. Later, Espartero himself close the Cortes and with the backing of infante Felipe convened them once again. Later on the year he announced a Treaty of Free Commerce with the United Kingdom, which led to riots in Barcelona and then Espartero personally bombarded the citadelle and the city itself, making them pay over 12 million reales.

The bombardment of Barcelona proved to be too much for both anti-Ayacuchos and infante Felipe himself, both of which saw this as an act too despotic to let it slide. Nontheless Espartero and, angered, dissolved the Cortes yet again on January 3rd. This was done without the express consent of either the monarch or the regent and was a blatant act of anti-constitutionalism. Eventually forced to re-open the Cortes once again, he was forced to find a successor, whom he chose as a puppet for him to control from the shadows. This was blatantly opposed by the Cortes (led by Salustiano de Olózaga) and it led to the May Crisis and the later Pronunciamiento in Reus which was followed by the vast majority of the Spanish Levaant and which resulted in the resignation of Espartero himself as well as the regent Infante Felipe, who wanted out of the political machinery.

### Queen Maria Theresa’s regency

Espartero was defeated and set for Exile from Santa María del Puerto. Shortly after, Infante Felipe decided to officially relinquish the regency and acquiesced to set for a temporary exile to France. Queen Dowager Maria Theresa then presented herself with all her children in tow in front of the Cortes and officially asked for the regency of her firstborn. After much deliberation, it was agreed by the temporary Cortes.

Salustiano de Olózaga became Prime Minister however in an attempt to force the queen regent’s hand, he tried to have her sign a new Law of Townships, which she refused and caused a political turmoil called the “Olózaga Incident”. Eventually, Olózaga was forced to resign and Queen Mother Maria Theresa cemented herself as the Regent of Spain. New elections in 1844 gave the majority once again to the Moderados, which commenced their reign over Spain to last the last 4 years before the revolution.

The moderados set on transforming the country to their ideals, which was censitarian liberalism or doctrinairism. Soon enough Ramón María Narváez, proclaimed enemy of Espartero, was declared Prime Minister which would lead to several Progresista pronunciamientos throughout the country. Most of these suppressed, the main leaders of the Progresista Party had to either leave Spain or face jail time. Narváez instilled a system of repressive censorship, but one of the most important documents in Spanish history would nontheless be published: José María Orense’s pamphlet talked about the plans for the Progresista party for the upcoming elections, and it also started the division of the Progresista party into the monarchic faction and the republican party.

Maria Theresa was completely set on regulating what she perceived to be the “out of control Spanish government” thus when Francisco Javier de Istúriz’s government attempted to reincorporate the Progresistas into the political scene she immediately called upon a new Narváez government who, sensing the climate of political instability that could come upon with another Progresista government. A series of failing crops and political instability (uprisings in Galicia and another Traditionalist uprising in Catalonia) fractured even more the country.

### 1848 Revolution

-part of Revolutions of 1848-

On December 1st in Palermo, Sicily, a revolution broke out against the Bourbon dynasty reigning there. This was soon followed by revolutionary movements throughout Italy, France and Germany and it inspired the lower classes of Madrid to revolt on the 26th of March 1848, building up barricades. Street fighting broke out very fast and it was soon followed by similar movements in the major cities throughout the country. Madrilians stormed the Royal Palace and demanded that Narváez be destituted. The latter answered by sending in the military. However in a surprising turn of events the vast majority of the lower ranks of the military joined in the revolutionaries and finally on April 1st 1848 Narváez was asked to step down as PM of Spain by the regent, but he flatly refused. He tried to fight for the government against the revolutionaries, and for their own safety the royal family and the young king were transferred to Alcala de Henares and Narváez declared the Cortes to be disbanded.

However this proved too much for the Progresistas and the progresista-leaning moderados, who accused Narváez of dictatorial powers and demande dhe stepped down. Then on May 7th, General Buceta and his regiment made a pronunciamiento which the vast majority of Progresista sympathizers supported. The pronunciamiento stormed the offices of Narváez and he was forced to resign officially. He was then escorted out of Madrid and made to exile himself to London. After a couple of days as PM himself, Buceta recommended that Infante Francisco (1818-1900) took the reins of government, as the regent was too unpopular. Francisco then attempted to mantain the control from May to June 1848, but popular demand for the reopening of the Cortes and new elections proved too much and eventually they conceded. In the elections the Progresistas won in a landslide and in a move that surprised no one, several Progresistas demanded that Espartero be appointed as PM.

Francisco, who up to that point had been acting as both Regent and PM, initially conceded but very soon after the other members of the Progresista party convened and decided to elect Mendizábal as Prime Minister. The revolts were only starting to increase as did their violency and during the summer months of 1848 Spain was almost submerged in a system of anarchy. Unable to form a government, Mendizabal resigned at which point popular demand convened new elections which the Orensistas (or most leftist wing of the Progresista Party) won and they appointed José María Orense as head of government. The socialists at Madrid had already driven most of the Spanish Royal family out and the only remnants were Infante Francisco, Infante Felipe and Queen mother Maria Theresa. Alfonso and his younger brother Luis had been driven quietly to San Ildefonso under the care and supervision of their grandmother Queen Maria Amalia. Maria Theresa once again tried to burst into the Cortes and demand her position as regent restored, but the Cortes eventually not only refused but declared the depposition of the Bourbon Dynasty (mimicking a move by the Sicilian Parliament) and of Alfonso XII, who was guaranteed a safe exit from the kingdom.