Zusammenfassung der Ressource
Causes of the Spanish Civil War
- Weakness of the government
- From 1871 Spain was a constitutional monarchy
- The King was head of state
- The Parliament (Cortes)
was elected by males
- The real power was
held by the wealthy
- Power often shifted between their cliques
- Two main parties the
conservatives and the
liberals with not much
differentiating them
- Elections were rigged and
changed practically nothing
- The role of the army
- Were powerful due to
Spains Imperial past
- Believed it was the protector of the nation
- Meant it had the right to
intervene in politics if a
crisis occured
- Very unpopular with the people
- Reputation for brutality
- Expensive to maintain
- Was in need of reform, was too
big and had too many officers
- The role of the church
- Catholic church was rich and powerful
- State had guaranteed its role
in education and economy
- Its wealth had gained it
considerable political
and social influence
- Was inclined to support
the upper class
- Led to resentment amongst the poor
- Economic causes
- Spain was mainly an agricultural economy
- Agriculture was inefficient
- Work was seasonal
- Most lived in abject poverty
- Extreme gap between rich and poor
- Some groups often
supported the Anarchists to
fight for land redistribution
- Industry needed reform
- Expansion was limited by endemic poverty
- Led to growth of trade unionism
- WW1
- Inflation and shortages
- Violent conflict between employers and employees
- Sepratism of Basque and Catalonia
- Wanted decentralization and independence
- Had their own industrialised economies,
cultures, languages and churches
- They did not believe they were
valued enough considering
their economic importance
- Political opposition
- The UGT were influential in organising
urban areas strikes and protests
- The anarachists were popular due to
their popularity with the land owners
- The CNT (their trade union)
was as active as the UGT
- The FAI organised bombings and assasinations
- There was a small Communist party
after the Bolshevik revolution
- The fall of the Monarchy
- King Alfonso XIII could not resist the coup of General Primo de Rivera
- He was under pressure after 12 failed governments
- Primo de Rivera
- Developed industrial production
- Created huge debts
- Wall street crash caused problems
- He resigned in 1930
- Municipal elections showed support
for the San Sebastian Pact coalition
- The king went into voluntary exile
- Neither the army or church intervened
- Second republic established