:''Go directly to the Table'' Spain has proclaimed a number of Constitutions. The current

Constitution of Spain The Spanish Constitution (Spanish, Asturleonese, and gl, Constitución Española; eu, Espainiako Konstituzioa; ca, Constitució Espanyola; oc, Constitucion espanhòla) is the democratic law that is supreme in the Kingdom of Spain. It was ...

of 1978 is the culmination of the

Spanish transition to democracy Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries ** Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Ca ...

. The idea of a national constitution for Spain arose from the

Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (french: Déclaration des droits de l'homme et du citoyen de 1789, links=no), set by France's National Constituent Assembly in 1789, is a human civil rights document from the French Revol ...

initiated as a result of the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...

. The earliest constitution was written and promulgated in 1808 when Napoleon invaded Spain, Bourbon monarchs Ferdinand VII and Charles IV abdicated, and Napoleon placed his brother

Joseph Bonaparte it, Giuseppe-Napoleone Buonaparte es, José Napoleón Bonaparte , house = Bonaparte , father = Carlo Buonaparte , mother = Letizia Ramolino , birth_date = 7 January 1768 , birth_place = Corte, Corsica, Republic ...

on the throne. A constitution was drafted and the ''Junta Española'' Joseph I signed it. A major feature of the Constitution of 1808 was the provision for representation by Spanish America on an equal basis with the peninsula. Although signed by Spanish aristocrats and the new monarch, few in Spain recognized this document. With the eruption of the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spai ...

to oust the French invaders. A new

Cortes Cortes, Cortés, Cortês, Corts, or Cortès may refer to: People * Cortes (surname), including a list of people with the name ** Hernán Cortés (1485–1547), a Spanish conquistador Places * Cortes, Navarre, a village in the South border of ...

was summoned and met at

Cádiz Cádiz (, , ) is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the Province of Cádiz, one of eight that make up the autonomous community of Andalusia. Cádiz, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western Europe, ...

, which included Spanish American and Philippine delegates, and promulgated the

Spanish Constitution of 1812 The Political Constitution of the Spanish Monarchy ( es, link=no, Constitución Política de la Monarquía Española), also known as the Constitution of Cádiz ( es, link=no, Constitución de Cádiz) and as ''La Pepa'', was the first Constituti ...

. This constitution is generally recognized as Spain's first written constitution since it was drafted freely by delegates of the

Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...

. During

Francoist Spain Francoist Spain ( es, España franquista), or the Francoist dictatorship (), was the period of Spanish history between 1939 and 1975, when Francisco Franco ruled Spain after the Spanish Civil War with the title . After his death in 1975, Spani ...

, there were many attempts to create stable institutions that did not (at least directly) emanate from Francisco Franco as they did in the post-war period. The Fundamental Laws of the Realm (Spanish: ''Leyes Fundamentales del Reino'') were a constitution in parts enacted through nearly 20 years starting in the 1950s. They established the very institutions that would later, under

Juan Carlos I Juan Carlos I (;, * ca, Joan Carles I, * gl, Xoán Carlos I, Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias, born 5 January 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who reigned as King of Spain from 22 Novem ...

and Prime Minister

Adolfo Suárez Adolfo Suárez González, 1st Duke of Suárez (; 25 September 1932 – 23 March 2014) was a Spanish lawyer and politician. Suárez was Spain's first democratically elected prime minister since the Second Spanish Republic and a key figure in th ...

, commit "constitutional suicide" and pass the Political Reform Act, starting the

. Most of those Laws theoretically provided for a quite free state, but ultimately the power of the

Caudillo A ''caudillo'' ( , ; osp, cabdillo, from Latin , diminutive of ''caput'' "head") is a type of personalist leader wielding military and political power. There is no precise definition of ''caudillo'', which is often used interchangeably with " ...

was supreme. Finally, the constitution in force is similar to the (unwritten) British democratic monarchy model, but the

2014 Catalan self-determination referendum A non-binding Catalan self-determination referendum, also known as the Citizen Participation Process on the Political Future of Catalonia, was held on Sunday, 9 November 2014, to gauge support on the political future of Catalonia. While also ref ...

has provoked calls for an entirely democratic federal republican model. Below there is a comprehensive table, but this is an overview: * 1808–1814 Bayonne Constitution - Napoleonic restructuring from royal edict to the bicameral parliament * 1812 Constitution of 1812 - The first attempt at decentralization * 1814 Constitution of 1812 - derogated by the

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen regnant, queen, which title is also given to the queen consort, consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contempora ...

, absolutist monarchy restored * 1820–23 Reinstatement of the Constitution of 1812 * 1834 Absolute monarchy * 1837 Constitutional monarchy * 1845 Regency empowerment * 1856 Failed attempt at democracy * 1869 Another failed attempt at democracy * 1873

First Spanish Republic The Spanish Republic ( es, República Española), historiographically referred to as the First Spanish Republic, was the political regime that existed in Spain from 11 February 1873 to 29 December 1874. The Republic's founding ensued after th ...

* 1876 Failed attempt to become a federal republic * 1931

Second Spanish Republic The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931, after the deposition of King Alfonso XIII, and was dissolved on 1 ...

* 1936 Martial law under

Francisco Franco Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War and thereafter ruled over Spain from 193 ...

* 1939 – 1978

* 1978 Transition to democratic monarchy

Table

References

External links

*
Text of all Spanish Constitutions, except the 1808 one
{{DEFAULTSORT:Constitutions Of Spain Constitutions of Spain

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...