The term Alfonsism refers to the movement in Spanish

monarchism Monarchism is the advocacy of the system of monarchy or monarchical rule. A monarchist is an individual who supports this form of government independently of any specific monarch, whereas one who supports a particular monarch is a royalist. ...

that supported the restoration of

Alfonso XIII Alfonso XIII (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Alfonso León Fernando María Jaime Isidro Pascual Antonio de Borbón y Habsburgo-Lorena''; French language, French: ''Alphonse Léon Ferdinand Marie Jacques Isidore Pascal Antoine de Bourbon''; 17 May ...

King of Spain The monarchy of Spain or Spanish monarchy () is the constitutional form of government of Spain. It consists of a Hereditary monarchy, hereditary monarch who reigns as the head of state, being the highest office of the country. The Spanish ...

after the foundation of the

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

in 1931. The Alfonsists competed with the rival monarchists, the

Carlists Carlism (; ; ; ) is a Traditionalist and Legitimist political movement in Spain aimed at establishing an alternative branch of the Bourbon dynasty, one descended from Don Carlos, Count of Molina (1788–1855), on the Spanish throne. The ...

, for the throne of Spain.

Background

Since the crisis of the dynastic conservatism in the 1910s, the authoritarian accents within the former political camp had increased, with a new generation of Maurist politicians bringing ideas of corporativism, integral nationalism,

economic interventionism A market intervention is a policy or measure that modifies or interferes with a market, typically done in the form of state action, but also by philanthropic and political-action groups. Market interventions can be done for a number of reas ...

and

political Catholicism The Catholic Church and politics concerns the interplay of Catholicism with religious, and later secular, politics. The Catholic Church's views and teachings have evolved over its history and have at times been significant political influences ...

. After 1923, the

dictatorship of Primo de Rivera General Miguel Primo de Rivera's dictatorship over Spain began with a coup on 13 September 1923 and ended with his resignation on 28 January 1930. It took place during the wider reign of King Alfonso XIII. In establishing his dictatorship, ...

espoused as ideology a mix of authoritarian and bureaucratic conservatism with some traditionalist trappings. As the very same Alfonso XIII began to identify with the new regime, the remains of the liberal-conservative tradition largely distanced from the figure of the King or even from the monarchy altogether. After the forced resignation of Primo de Rivera in 1930, the authoritarian wing largely gathered into the National Monarchist Union.

History

After the overthrow of the monarchy of Alfonso XIII in 1931, the supporters of the later formed the '' Renovación Española'' in 1933, a monarchist political party split from Popular Action, which held considerable economic influence and had close supporters in the Spanish army.Andrew Forrest. ''The Spanish Civil War''. London, England, UK; New York, USA: Routledge, 2000. Pp. 10. Alfonsists adapted authoritarian elements from

Italian Fascism Italian fascism (), also called classical fascism and Fascism, is the original fascist ideology, which Giovanni Gentile and Benito Mussolini developed in Italy. The ideology of Italian fascism is associated with a series of political parties le ...

, ''

Action Française ''Action Française'' (, AF; ) is a French far-right monarchist and nationalist political movement. The name was also given to a journal associated with the movement, '' L'Action Française'', sold by its own youth organization, the Camelot ...

'', and Portuguese Integralism into their cause.Martin Blinkhorn. ''Fascists and Conservatives''. 2nd ed. Oxon, England, UK: Routledge, 2001. Pp. 127. ''Renovación Española'' did not, however, manage to become a mass political movement. The Alfonsists received little support outside of their clique of well-established supporters, while their rivals, the Carlists, soared to become a mass movement in Spain. ''Renovación Española'' cooperated with the fascist Falange party led by

José Antonio Primo de Rivera José Antonio Primo de Rivera y Sáenz de Heredia, 1st Duke of Primo de Rivera, 3rd Marquess of Estella GE (24 April 1903 – 20 November 1936), often referred to simply as José Antonio, was a Spanish fascist politician who founded the Falan ...

, hoping to coopt it as a tool for the party's objectives. In 1937, during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

, the Alfonsists of ''Renovación Española'' merged alongside the Falange, the Carlist traditionalists, and

CEDA The Confederación Española de Derechas Autónomas (, CEDA) was a Spanish right-wing political party in the Second Spanish Republic. A Catholic conservative force, it was the political heir to Ángel Herrera Oria's Acción Popular and defined ...

under

Francisco Franco Francisco Franco Bahamonde (born Francisco Paulino Hermenegildo Teódulo Franco Bahamonde; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general and dictator who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces i ...

's directive to form a united National Movement, the

FET y de las JONS The Falange Española Tradicionalista y de las Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional Sindicalista (; FET y de las JONS), frequently shortened to just "FET", was the sole legal party of the Francoist regime in Spain. It was created by General Francisco ...

.Martin Blinkhorn. ''Fascists and Conservatives''. 2nd ed. Oxon, England, UK: Routledge, 2001. Pp. 133-134.

References

{{Reflist Alfonso XIII Eponymous political ideologies Monarchism in Spain