This article gives an overview of liberalism and radicalism in Spain. It is limited to

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

and

radical Radical (from Latin: ', root) may refer to: Politics and ideology Politics *Classical radicalism, the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe and Latin America in the 19th century *Radical politics ...

parties A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature ...

with substantial support, mainly proved by having been represented in parliament. The sign ⇒ denotes another party in that scheme. For inclusion in this scheme it is not necessary that parties label themselves as a liberal or radical party.

Background

In the nineteenth century, liberalism was a major political force in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, but as in many other continental European countries care must be taken over the use of labels as this term was used with different meanings (this is discussed in the article on

Radicalism (historical) Radicalism (from French ) was a political movement representing the leftward flank of liberalism between the late 18th and early 20th century. Certain aspects of the movement were precursors to a wide variety of modern-day movements, ranging f ...

. As in much of Europe, the nineteenth-century history of Spain would largely revolve around the conflicts ''between'' the three major liberal currents - radicalism; progressive classical liberalism, or conservative classical liberalism. While all three rejected the Catholic, traditionalist, and absolutist

Old Regime Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...

, each had a different perspective on the urgency and degree to which state and society needed reforming to modernize the values and institutions. * The term 'liberal' itself was usually used to signify classical liberalism. It had a progressive-liberal wing as represented by the Fusionist Liberal Party (more inclined towards gradual reform, and making compromises with the radical current); and a conservative-liberal wing as represented by the

Liberal Conservative Liberal conservatism is a political ideology combining conservative policies with liberal stances, especially on economic issues but also on social and ethical matters, representing a brand of political conservatism strongly influenced by libe ...

Party (more inclined towards traditionalism, and compromising with the absolute-monarchist faction). Its various currents were broadly united by a set of shared beliefs: *# In political affairs, parliamentarianism, though of a socially-conservative kind (e.g., suffrage limited to property-owners); *# In economic affairs, free-market capitalism; *# In social affairs, conservatism (e.g.: rejecting full

universal suffrage Universal suffrage or universal franchise ensures the right to vote for as many people bound by a government's laws as possible, as supported by the " one person, one vote" principle. For many, the term universal suffrage assumes the exclusion ...

; or a strictly laic

separation of church and state The separation of church and state is a philosophical and Jurisprudence, jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the State (polity), state. Conceptually, the term refers to ...

) *# In constitutional affairs, flexible towards the type of constitutional regime (monarchy or republic). * For the left-liberal and social-liberal currents, 'liberal' was rarely used as the single defining label. Instead such currents rather used labels such as ''radical'', ''democratic'' or ''republican'' (see

republicanism Republicanism is a political ideology that encompasses a range of ideas from civic virtue, political participation, harms of corruption, positives of mixed constitution, rule of law, and others. Historically, it emphasizes the idea of self ...

). The shared beliefs that generally unified its various factions included: *#

Universal manhood suffrage Universal manhood suffrage is a form of voting rights in which all adult male citizens within a political system are allowed to vote, regardless of income, property, religion, race, or any other qualification. It is sometimes summarized by the s ...

; *# Sovereignty to be vested in the people of the nation rather than in the royal parliament; *# A root-and-branch reform to remove the political influence of monarchical, religious and aristocratic patronage; *# A certain degree of

social democracy Social democracy is a Social philosophy, social, Economic ideology, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achi ...

, as the nineteenth century progressed; *# An active role for an administratively-centralized state in carrying out these tasks.

History

Each of the following sections describes an element of Spanish liberalism and radicalism, mostly beginning with the 19th century.

From Liberals to Liberal Fusionist Party

*1808-12: Until 1839 the Spanish liberals were not organized in a well-established party, but formed their own factions. During the

War of Independence Wars of national liberation, also called wars of independence or wars of liberation, are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against foreign powers (or at least those perceived as foreign) ...

and the Constitution of Cádiz the term ''Liberals (Liberales, 1812-1820)'' was used to describe the diverse range of currents influenced by the

Enlightenment Enlightenment or enlighten may refer to: Age of Enlightenment * Age of Enlightenment, period in Western intellectual history from the late 17th to late 18th century, centered in France but also encompassing (alphabetically by country or culture): ...

and French Revolution and united in rejecting the absolutism of the Bourbon monarchy. *1820-39: Between 1820 and 1839 the Liberals split into two factions. The 'Radicals' (''Exaltados''), known as ''Veinteanistas'' (Supporters of 1820) were inspired by French Jacobinism and Radicalism and wished to draft a new more progressive constitution based on universal suffrage; the '

Moderates Moderate is an ideological category which entails Centrism, centrist views on a liberal-conservative spectrum. It may also designate a rejection of radical politics, radical or extremism, extreme views, especially in regard to politics and religi ...

' (''Moderados''), closer to classical liberalism, were known as ''Doceanistas'' (Supporters of 1812) as they wished simply to restore the more limited constitution of 1812. *1839-1879: Finally in 1839 most of the Radicals and

organized themselves into a loose parliamentary group known as the Progressives (''Progresistas'', 1839–1880), led by people like

Baldomero Espartero Baldomero Fernández-Espartero y Álvarez de Toro (27 February 17938 January 1879) was a Spanish marshal and statesman. He served as the Regent of the Realm, three times as Prime Minister and briefly as President of the Congress of Deputies ...

, Salustiano Olózoga,

Juan Prim Juan Prim y Prats, 1st Count of Reus, 1st Marquis of los Castillejos, 1st Viscount of Bruch (; ; 6 December 1814 – 30 December 1870) was a Spanish general and statesman who was briefly Prime Minister of Spain until his assassination. Bio ...

, Práxedes Sagasta and

Francisco Serrano y Domínguez, Duke de la Torre Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Meaning of the name Francisco In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed " Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comm ...

. Out of this current various factions splintered off to form successor parties: the **in 1843, the ⇒Democratic Party **in 1854 the ⇒Liberal Union; **in 1869 the Democratic Radical Party; **in 1879 the ⇒

Democratic Progressive Party The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is a centre to centre-left Taiwanese nationalist political party in Taiwan. As the dominant party in the Pan-Green Coalition, one of the two main political camps in Taiwan, the DPP is currently the ...

. *1880: The majority of Liberal currents united in the Fusionist (i.e. merged) Liberal Party (''Partido Liberal Fusionista''), led by Sagasta, though some more Radical factions remain outside the party *1882: A left-wing faction of the party established the ⇒

Dynastic Left The Dynastic Left (, ID) was a Spanish political party founded in 1881 by elements from the Liberal Fusionist Party and the Democratic Progressive Party. Between 1884 and 1886 most of its members returned to the Liberal Fusionist Party, now reb ...

, most of its members returned between 1884 and 1886 to the Liberal Fusionist Party *1890: The ⇒ Possibilist Democratic Party joined the party *1907: A left-wing faction of the party seceded as the ⇒ Monarchist Democratic Party *1918: A faction seceded as the ⇒ Liberal Left *1923: The party disappeared due to the

Miguel Primo de Rivera Miguel Primo de Rivera y Orbaneja, 2nd Marquis of Estella, Grandee, GE (8 January 1870 – 16 March 1930), was a Spanish dictator and military officer who ruled as prime minister of Spain from 1923 to 1930 during the last years of the Resto ...

coup

Democratic Party

*1843: The left-wing of the ⇒ Progressives established the Democratic Party (''Partido Demócrata'') as a rally of left-wing liberals and moderate socialists *1868: The republican wing formed the ⇒ Federal Republican Party *1871: The party disappeared and remnants of the party continue as a monarchist party

Liberal Union

*1854:

Moderate Moderate is an ideological category which entails centrist views on a liberal-conservative spectrum. It may also designate a rejection of radical or extreme views, especially in regard to politics and religion. Political position Canad ...

⇒ progressives established the Liberal Union (''Unión Liberal''), led by

Leopoldo O'Donnell Leopoldo O'Donnell y Jorris, 1st Duke of Tetuán, GE (12 January 1809 – 5 November 1867), was a Spanish general and Grandee who was Prime Minister of Spain on several occasions. Early life He was born at Santa Cruz de Tenerife in the Cana ...

*1868: The party merged with the conservative

into the Liberal Conservative Party

Federal Republican Party

*1868: The republican wing of the ⇒ Democratic Party established the

Federal Democratic Republican Party The Federal Democratic Republican Party (, PRDF) was a Spanish political party founded in 1868 during the Glorious Revolution that was active until 1912. Its ideology was federal republicanism and progressivism. History In 1868, the left-wing ...

(''Partido Republicano Democrático Federal''), also known as the Republican-Democratic Party *1878: A faction joined the ⇒ Reformist Republican Party *1879: A faction seceded as the ⇒ Possibilist Democratic Party *1891: The party absorbs a faction of the ⇒ Democratic Radical Party *1923: The party disappeared due to the Primo de Rivera coup

From Democratic Radical Party to Centralist Party

*1869: A left-wing faction of the Progressives seceded as the Democratic Radical Party (''Partido Radical Demócrata''), led by Ruiz Zorilla *1876: The party is reorganised into the Reformist Republican Party, led by

Nicolás Salmerón Nicolas or Nicolás may refer to: People Given name * Nicolas (given name) Mononym * Nicolas (footballer, born 1999), Brazilian footballer * Nicolas (footballer, born 2000), Brazilian footballer Surname Nicolas * Dafydd Nicolas (c.1705–1774), ...

*1878: A faction of the ⇒ Federal Republican Party joined the party *1879: A faction joined the ⇒

*1890: The party is renamed Centralist Party (''Partido Centralista'') *1891: The party is absorbed by the ⇒ Federal Republican Party

Possibilist Democratic Party

*1879: A faction of the ⇒ Federal Republican Party formed the Possibilist Democratic Party ('Partido Posibilista'), led by

Emilio Castelar Emilio Castelar y Ripoll (7 September 183225 May 1899) was a Spanish republican politician, and a president of the First Spanish Republic. Castelar was born in Cádiz. He was an eloquent orator and a writer. Appointed as Head of State in 1873 ...

*1890: The party joins the ⇒ Liberal Fusionist Party

Democratic Progressive Party

*1879: A left wing faction of the ⇒ Progressives with dissidents of the Reformist Republican Party formed the

(''Partido Progresista Democrático'') *1882: The party merges into the ⇒

Dynastic Left

*1882: A faction of the ⇒ Liberal Fusionist Party together with the

established the

(''Izquierda Dinástica''), led by Francisco Serrano and

Adolfo Posada Adolfo may refer to: * Adolfo, São Paulo, a Brazilian municipality * Adolfo (designer) Adolfo Faustino Sardiña (February 15, 1923 – November 27, 2021), professionally known as Adolfo, was a Cuban-born American fashion designer who started out a ...

*1886: Between 1884 and 1886 most of the members returned to the ⇒ Liberal Fusionist Party

Liberal Democratic Party

*1913: A faction of the ⇒ Fusionist Liberal Party seceded and formed the

Liberal Democratic Party Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party, Democratic Liberal Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties have usually followed liberalism as ideology, although they can vary widely from very progr ...

, led by

Manuel García Prieto Manuel may refer to: People * Manuel (name), a given name and surname * Manuel (''Fawlty Towers''), a fictional character from the sitcom ''Fawlty Towers'' * Manuel I Komnenos, emperor of the Byzantine Empire * Manuel I of Portugal, king of Po ...

*1923: The party disappeared

Republican Union (1906)

*1906: A faction of the ⇒ Federal Republican Union seceded as the Republican Union (''Unión Republicana''), led by

*1908: A faction seceded as the ⇒ Radical Republican Party *1923: The party disappeared due to the Primo de Rivera coup

Monarchist Democratic Party

*1907: A left-wing faction of the ⇒ Liberal Fusionist Party seceded as the Monarchist Democratic Party (''Partido Democrático Monnárquico'') of José Canalejas *1923: The party disappeared due to the Primo de Rivera coup

Radical Republican Party

*1908: A faction of the ⇒ Republican Union established the

Radical Republican Party The Radical Republican Party (), sometimes shortened to the Radical Party, was a Spanish Radical party in existence between 1908 and 1936. Beginning as a splinter from earlier Radical parties, it initially played a minor role in Spanish parlia ...

(''Partido Republicano Radical''), led by

Alejandro Lerroux Alejandro Lerroux García (4 March 1864, in La Rambla, Córdoba – 25 June 1949, in Madrid) was a Spanish politician who was the leader of the Radical Republican Party. He served as Prime Minister three times from 1933 to 1935 and held sever ...

*1929: A left-wing faction established the ⇒ Radical Socialist Republican Party *1933: Due to the development into a conservative party, the liberal wing seceded as the ⇒ Radical Democratic Party. The original party disappeared in 1939

Liberal Left

*1918: A faction of the ⇒ Fusionist Liberal Party seceded to form the

Liberal Left The Liberal Left (''Sinistra Liberale'', SL) was a minor liberalism, liberal faction within the Democrats of the Left, an Italian political party. It was formed basically by former left-wingers of the Italian Liberal Party. Its leaders include Gi ...

(''Izquierda Liberal'') *1923: The party disappeared due to the Primo de Rivera coup

From Republican Action to Republican Left

*1926:

Manuel Azaña Manuel Azaña Díaz (; 10 January 1880 – 3 November 1940) was a Spanish politician who served as Prime Minister of Spain, Prime Minister of the Second Spanish Republic (1931–1933 and 1936), organizer of the Popular Front in 1935 and the la ...

established the Republican Action (''Acción Republicana''), as a cross-party thinktank which initially worked closely alongside the Radical Republican party. *1931: Republican Action was converted into a political party. *1934: The party merged with a politically similar Galician regional party and the left-wing faction of the ⇒ Radical Socialist Republican Party into the Republican Left (''Izquierda Republicana'') *1939: The party is banned, though there were later attempts to revive the party after 1976

Radical Socialist Republican Party

*1929: A left-wing faction of the ⇒ Radical Republican Party established the

Radical Socialist Republican Party The Radical Socialist Republican Party (PRRS; ), sometimes shortened to Radical Socialist Party (PRS; ''Partido Radical Socialista''), was a Spanish radical political party, created in 1929 after the split of the left-wing in Alejandro Lerroux's ...

(''Partido Republicano Radical Socialista'') *1934: The party is dissolved, members joined the ⇒ Republican Left or the ⇒ Republican Union

From Democratic Radical Party to Republican Union

*1933: Due to the development of the ⇒ Radical Republican Party, the liberal wing seceded as the Democratic Radical Party (''Partido Radical Demócrata'') *1934: The party merged with a faction of the ⇒ Radical Socialist Republican Party into the Republican Union (''Unión Republicana'') *1939: The party is banned

Democratic Convergence of Catalonia

*1974: Democrats in

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

established the

Democratic Convergence of Catalonia The Democratic Convergence of Catalonia (; , CDC), frequently shortened as Convergence (; ) was a Catalan nationalist, liberal political party in Catalonia (Spain), currently still existing without any political activity. The party was originall ...

, a democratic nationalist party with liberal values, led by

Jordi Pujol Jordi Pujol i Soley (, born 9 June 1930) is a retired Catalan politician who was the leader of the party Convergència Democràtica de Catalunya (CDC) from 1974 to 2003, and President of the Generalitat de Catalunya from 1980 to 2003. Early life ...

Democratic and Social Centre

*1982: Former 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 of Spain, prime minister since the Second Spanish Republi ...

left the Union of the Democratic Centre and established the liberal Democratic and Social Centre (''Centro Democrático y Social''). The party lost parliamentary representation in 1993, but continued to exist until 2006.

Citizens

*2005: The leader of

Citizens Citizenship is a membership and allegiance to a sovereign state. Though citizenship is often conflated with nationality in today's English-speaking world, international law does not usually use the term ''citizenship'' to refer to nationality; ...

(''Ciudadanos'') was founded.

Union, Progress and Democracy

*2007: The leader of

Union, Progress and Democracy Union, Progress and Democracy ( , UPyD ) was a Spanish list of political parties in Spain, political party founded in September 2007 and dissolved in December 2020. It was a social liberalism, social-liberal party that rejected any form of nation ...

(''Unión, Progreso y Democracia'') became the former member of the

Spanish Socialist Workers' Party The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party ( , PSOE ) is a Social democracy, social democratic Updated as required.The PSOE is described as a social-democratic party by numerous sources: * * * * List of political parties in Spain, political party ...

Rosa Díez Rosa María Díez González (born 27 May 1952) is a Spanish politician from Union, Progress and Democracy, UPyD deputy in the Congress of Deputies from 2008 to 2016. When she was a member of the PSOE, she defined herself as a social democrat ...

. She created it with the philosophers

Fernando Savater Fernando Fernández-Savater Martín (born 21 June 1947 at Basque city of San Sebastián) is a Spanish philosopher, essayist and author. Early years and career Born in San Sebastián, he was an Ethics professor at the University of the Basqu ...

and Carlos Martínez Gorriarán.

Liberal leaders

*Liberals before 1912: Emilio Castelar y Ripoll – José Canalejas y Mendez *Izquierda Republicana:

*Centro Democratico y Social:

Liberal thinkers

In the

Contributions to liberal theory Individual contributors to classical liberalism and political liberalism are associated with philosophers of the Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment. Liberalism as a specifically named ideology begins in the late 18th century as a movement toward ...

the following Spanish thinkers are included: *

José Ortega y Gasset José Ortega y Gasset (; ; 9 May 1883 – 18 October 1955) was a Spanish philosopher and essayist. He worked during the first half of the 20th century while Spain oscillated between monarchy, republicanism and dictatorship. His philosoph ...

(Spain, 1883–1955) *

Salvador de Madariaga Salvador de Madariaga y Rojo (23 July 1886 – 14 December 1978) was a Spanish "eminent liberal", diplomat, writer, historian and pacifist who was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature and the Nobel Peace Prize and awarded the Charl ...

(Spain, 1886–1978)

References

External links

{{Liberalism in Europe