The Spanish Revolution, 1868-1875

Preface

. The Revolution of 1868 is the most interesting period in the modern history of Spain. It marks the transition from the Spain of Ferdinand VII. and Isabella II. to the Spain of Alfonso XII. and the Regency, and it forms, at the same time, an episode entirely distinct from the history which precedes and follows it. This sketch was written in the early part of 1893, from materials collected during my residence in Madrid from 1888 to 1890 as Secretary of the United States Legation, with the intention at some future day of making it a part of a larger work. The manuscript was laid aside when I re-entered the public service in April, 1893. On my return from South America a short time ago, I read the manuscript again, and it seemed to me that it might be of interest at this time. In preparing the book for the press, I have been indebted to the continuous helpful ness of my friend, Mr. Lindsay Swift, of the Boston Public Library.

Although, as I have said, the history of the Revolution stands apart from the periods before and after, and although the aims of its promoters were doomed to failure, it is but just to remember that the Revolution bore good fruit in the improved method of government which has distinguished the reign of Alfonso XII. and the Regency, and in the twenty years of tranquillity enjoyed by the country from the date of the Restoration to the breaking out of the insurrection in Cuba. E. H. S. June, 1898. CONTENTS Chaptef Page I. The Fall of Isabella II 1 H. The Pkovisional Government and the Constituent Cortes 26 III. The Serrano Regency and the Search for a King . 68 IV. The Experiment of Amadeo and the Democratic Monarchy 116 V. The Republican Dictatorships and the Coup d'Ætat 177 VI. The Reaction and Restoration

Chapter I The Fall Of Isabella II

(September 19 — September 30, 1868.) IN the early morning of September 19, 1868, there was great tumult in the ancient city of Cadiz. The windows, balconies, and roofs of its white houses, its walls and fortifications, which seem to rise from the blue waves of the Mediterranean, were covered with people, and the long street facing the harbour was filled with an excited crowd. All eyes were turned seaward to watch the movements of the fleet. The frigates Saragossa, Villa de Madrid, Tetuan, Vulcan, and nine other vessels were drawn up in battle array, with the Admiral's ensign flying from the mast-head of the Saragossa. Soon the harbour resounded with a salute of twenty-one guns from the fleet, which was answered by the acclamations of the people on the shore. This undue disturbance among the dwellers of a city where the commercial activity of former ages has declined into a persistent tranquil lity, was kindled by the following proclamations, which, on the day before, had been published and scattered broadcast through the city : — " People of Cadiz : A sailor who is under obliga tions to you for marked distinctions, and who has been your representative in Parliament, addresses you in explanation of an event of the gravest import.

This event is the hostile attitude of the navy toward the unhappy government which guides the destinies of the nation. Expect from my pen no beauties of style ; only make ready to listen to the truth. Our unhappy country has for years submitted to the most horrible dictatorship; our fundamental laws have been shattered ; the rights of the citizens ridiculed ; a fictitious basis of representation created ; the bond uniting the people and the throne, and forming the constitutional monarchy, has been completely broken. " There is no necessity for proclaiming these facts ; they are in the knowledge of all. If it were not so, I would call to mind the right of legislation which the Government has exercised exclusively in its own behalf. It has at the same time aggravated this wrong by the cynical pretence of securing the ap proval of these laws from a so-called Cortes, which has not even been allowed to discuss the decrees brought before it, to such a degree was the Govern ment distrustful of its own followers.

That my words are not exaggerated, is proved by the character of the laws regarding the methods of administering the different branches of the Government, the laws concerning public order and printing, and the law of public instruction, — the absolute negation of every liberal doctrine. " Passing from the sphere of politics to that of finance, we find that there have been recent emis sions, loans, and an increase of taxes of every kind. What has become of the proceeds ? You know how they have been squandered. The navy, the support of the merchant marine and the protector of com merce, knows and deplores it as well as you. This navy, which a short time ago was proclaimed the glory of the country, now sees its arsenals deserted, its labourers destitute, its forces dispirited. This gloomy picture is a living portraiture of the immorality of the Government.

Evils of such magnitude demand corresponding remedies. Unfortunately, legal redress is forbidden us. We are compelled to appeal to illegal, to heroic measures. With this ex planation of the motives of myself and my com panions, I shall now tell you of our aspirations. " We desire that the legitimate powers — - the people and the throne — should perform their functions within the orbit marked out for them by the Consti tution. We desire to re-establish between them the harmony which has been destroyed and the bond which has been broken. We desire that a Cortes, especially assembled for that purpose, by loyal effort and by taking advantage of the oft-repeated lessons of a fatal experience, shall decide upon the best methods for the foundation of a genuine constitu tional monarchy. We desire that the rights of the citizen shall be respected by the Government, and that the sacred principle which is inherent in the name of citizen shall be recognized.

We desire that the Treasury shall be administered in accordance with a spirit of morality and enlightenment; that it shall relieve burdens, extinguish restrictions, and give a wide field to the exercise of every legitimate indus try, as well as to individual activity and individual talent. " These are, briefly expressed, my aspirations and those of my companions. Will you give them your support without distinction of party, and forgetting slight differences which are injurious to the country? If you so act, yon will labour for the happiness of our native land. May we not hope to obtain the support of all ? Let each do good who has the strength to do it. Our aims do not spring from our affection for any party. We belong to none; we recognise the good will of all, since we suppose that all are eager for the good of the country.

This is the banner which this fleet unfurls. " Let no one fear that this act means our estrange ment from the army, or that we are impelled by selfish motives. If to-day we humble mariners rush forth to take the place of others who have a greater claim, we do this in obedience to pressing motives. Let the others come to our aid; let not only the army but the statesmen and the people seize the banner which we have unfurled. Of all we make only one demand, a place of honour in the combat. This and the satisfaction of our own consciences are the sole rewards to which we aspire. " Since the greatest movements are usually accom panied by catastrophes which dim their brightness and give comfort to the enemy, I believe that I am doing a service to the Liberal cause by being pre pared, with the aid of my companions, to restrain every excess.

Liberty is inconceivable without order, without respect for persons and things. People of Cadiz, I believe that I show myself worthy of your affection by placing myself in the vanguard of the contest which begins to-day and which you will sus tain with your customary valour. I discharge my obligation to you by this explanation of my conduct, its motives and its aims. To you alone I address myself. Let those speak to the nation who have the authority to do so. Juan Bautista Topete. " Cadiz Bat, on board the Saragossa, September 17, 1868." This proclamation of Admiral Topete was the beginning of the Spanish Revolution of 1868. It is indefinite in its allegations. No open attack was made upon the dynasty; but it meant that the fleet at Cadiz was in rebellion against the established Government, and that the movement thus begun was to bring to an end a reign which had opened under the best auspices.

In the struggle between the adherents of the brother and the daughter of Ferdinand VII., which had dev astated Spain from 1833 to 1839, Don Carlos represented absolutism and clericalism, while the cause of Isabella was identified with the liberal tendencies of the country, which had been ruthlessly suppressed during the previous reign by the intervention of the Holy Alliance and by the French occupation.1 The Queen was regarded by the mass of her supporters as the representative not only of hereditary right, but of the hopes of free institutions, constitutional gov ernment, and a monarchy of new ideas. The failure of these hopes resulted not only from the character of the Queen herself, impatient as she was of consti tutional restrictions, but also from the willingness of certain of her advisers to accept her views of her prerogatives and to encourage her in a pobcy of reaction.

The reign of Isabella II. was consequently a period of political excesses, of vain efforts at reform, and of insurrections, disregarded as warnings and followed by harsh measures of repression, which were to cul minate in a successful attack upon the throne and the expulsion of the dynasty. General Prim, accompanied by Sagasta and Ruiz 1 Under the Duke of Angouleme, 1823-1827. Zorilla, had arrived from England on the night of the 17th. The generals in exile in the Canary Islands with General Serrano, Duke de la Torre, who was to place himself at the head of the insurrection, had not yet been heard from. Topete, after consultation with Prim, determined to issue his proclamation and to define his position at once without waiting for the arrival of the other generals. At the same time he was disposed to leave the more distinct enunciation of aims and principles to the men whose political positions and career were more conspicuous than his own.

The proclamation which Prim addressed, not to the people of Cadiz alone, but to the whole of Spain, was more vigorous in its appeal and more explicit in its declarations, as is shown by the following paragraphs : — " To arms, citizens, to arms ! " Let this war-cry be to-day the sole cry of all good Spaniards. Let all Liberals during the contest blot out their former differences and make upon the altar of their country the sacrifice of painful recollections. In a word, in the great Liberal community, let there be but a sole purpose, — combat ; a sole aim, — victory ; a sole banner, — the regeneration of the country. " To destroy in the midst of tumult the obstacles which systematically oppose the welfare of nations, is the mission of armed revolution. To reconstruct in the midst of calm and reflection is the proposed aim of those nations who desire to conquer their sovereignty by their valour, and who know how to make themselves worthy of self-government by prudently preserving the sovereignty they have won.

Let us, then, suddenly destroy what time and progress ought, step by step, to have transformed, but let us not venture too soon upon solutions which circumstances may in the future make incapable of realisation. Let us not prejudge questions which may weaken us for the combat and enfeeble the sovereignty of the nation. Whenever calm is born anew and reflection takes the place of force, then parties can raise their banners without danger, and the people, in the use of their sovereignty, can establish such a constitution as they see fit. For this purpose they can seek in universal suffrage all the guarantees which they believe to be necessary to the conquest of their liberties and the enjoyment of their rights. "Juan Prim." The first response to these appeals came on the 18th from the little town of San Fernando, near Cadiz.

The revenue officers and a company of in fantry in barracks at that post hastened to place themselves under the command of General Primo de Rivera, one of the leaders of the movement. Not until the morning of the 19th did the city of Cadiz itself put on the appearance of open insurrection. The regiment of Cantabria, which was quartered in the city, joined the movement and placed itself at the disposal of Colonel Merelo, one of the political refugees who had been for some days concealed in the city. The civil guards sided with the populace whom they had been ordered to disperse. The telegraph lines were cut to prevent the summons of government forces from Seville. The proclamation of the governor declaring martial law made no impression upon the inhabitants, who knew that the troops would not execute any orders of repression.

As soon as they learned of the success of their proclamations, Prim and Topete hastened to land and make their entry into Cadiz, where they were welcomed by the enthusiastic cheers of the inhabitants. The military governor of the city resigned his command, and a revolutionary junta was formed, with Topete as President. In the afternoon of the same day, the Buenaventura, bringing the exiled generals, was signalled. Knowing nothing of the pronunciamiento, they intended to remain on the high sea until night; but the Vulcan, the frigate which had carried them into exile to the Canary Islands, went to meet the Buenaventura and informed her passengers of the event. The generals were received by Topete and Prim, and after a consultation another and more extended manifesto was addressed to the Spaniards and signed by all the leaders of the movement.

This manifesto, of a style similar to the two pre ceding, began by calling attention to the action of the city of Cadiz in refusing obedience to the Madrid Government and thus interpreting the feebngs of those citizens who, with long exercise of patience, had not lost the sentiment of personal dignity. If an extended examination were made of the causes of an occurrence of such gravity, it would be more difficult to justify in the eyes of the world the sub missiveness with which these evils had been borne than the extreme resolution which had been taken to end them. " The Treasury abounds in immorality, the press is mute, and the universal silence is only interrupted by the frequent notices of new and unex pected elevations, of some corrupt scheme; of some royal order, issued for the purpose of defrauding the public treasury; of titles of Castile bestowed with vile prodigality, the high price attained by dishonour and vice."

The navy had always been foreign to political disturbances, and its appearance at the head of the movement showed that it was not a political party which complained, and that the question was not confined to the field of politics. It was a struggle for existence and decency. Order should be kept by a provisional government, while universal suffrage was laying the foundations of social and political regeneration. For the successful attainment of these objects, reliance was placed upon the sympathetic aid of all Liberals, of the lovers of order, of the partisans of individual liberties, of the ministers of the Gospel, and upon the enthusiasm of the whole people and the approbation of the whole of Europe. The example of Cadiz and San Fernando was fol lowed by Jerez, Puerto Real, and San Lucar de Barrameda.

In Seville, Vasallo, the captain-general of the province, found that the troops had mutinied at the instigation of General Izquierdo, his second in command, who had pledged himself to effect the insurrection of the whole garrison. Having failed in his efforts to induce the regiments to return to their allegiance, the captain-general resigned his command and retired to Gibraltar. The provisional junta published a manifesto proclaiming universal suffrage, absolute freedom of the press, religious liberty, free trade, the abolition of the death penalty and of the existing constitution, and the substitution of voluntary enlistment in the army for conscription. It closed with the words, " Liberty forever ! Down with the dynasty! Long live the sovereignty of the nation! " This was the first manifesto that gave to the movement a distinctly political and radical character, and marked a long step in advance of the proclamations at Cadiz.

The news of the complete success of the insurrec tion in the chief city of Andalusia was received by the generals at Cadiz with great rejoicing. It was decided in a council of war that Serrano should take command of the garrisons of Cadiz and Seville, and whatever other troops could be collected in order to advance and give battle to the forces of the Govern ment. Topete was to remain at Cadiz at the head of the revolutionary junta. Prim, with three frigates, was to set out for the east coast, in order to gain over all the important places on the Mediterranean as far as Barcelona. On the 20th and 21st, Malaga, Granada, Cordova, Huelva, Algeciras, San Roque, and Lucena threw in their lot with the insurgents. The whole of Andalusia was in arms. On the 22nd, in an order of the day, General Serrano made the following announcement to the people of Seville : " To-morrow I shall be in the midst of you, and with our united forces we will begin our march to Madrid to establish the provisional government and to crown our noble enterprise."

Telegrams from the Governor of Cadiz on Sep tember 18 informed the Madrid Ministry of the arrival of General Prim and the pronunciamiento of the fleet at Cadiz. Martial law was immediately proclaimed in the city, and the Ministers at the capital tele- THE FALL OF ISABELLA LT 11 graphed to Gonzalez Bravo, the President of the Council of Ministers, who was at San Sebastian with the Queen and court, requesting his immediate return. On learning the details of the insurrection, the Prime Minister placed his resignation in the hands of the Queen, with the assurance that the nature of the crisis required that a military man of distinction and of influence with the army should be placed at the head of the Government. This advice was accepted by the Queen, who, after some consultation, appointed Captain-General Jos£ de la Concha, Marquis of Havana, giving him the portfolio of War.

He was at San Sebastian at the time, but immediately left by special train for Madrid, where he arrived on the morning of the 20th. The new President of the Council regarded his role as military and not political. His aim was to save the dynasty, if possible. On the afternoon of the 20th he received the resignation of the Ministers, who immediately left Madrid. After stopping in San Sebastian long enough to pay their respects to the Queen, in company with Gonzalez Bravo, all except the Minister of Foreign Affairs crossed the French frontier and took up their residence in Bayonne. Concha replaced them with no new appointments, except in the Navy department, which was accepted by General Estrada. The Marquis of Roncali, Min ister of Foreign Affairs in the last cabinet, was requested to retain his office and to continue in attendance on the Queen.

No political appointments to office were made, and the military governors of the provinces were charged with the functions of the civil governors wherever vacancies occurred. The whole of Spain was divided into four military dis tricts: 1st, Aragon, Catalonia, and Navarre, under Captain-General Pezuela, Count of Cheste; 2nd, New Castile and Valencia, under Captain-General Manuel de la Concha, Marquis del Duero, brother of the President of the Council; 3rd, Old Castile, Asturias, Galicia, and the Basque Provinces, under Lieutenant-General Calonge; and, 4th, Estremadura and Andalusia, under Captain-General Pavia, Marquis of Novaliches. Each of these officers was ordered to take immediate command of the district assigned to him. This measure checked the spread of the insurrection in the North and East.

It was admitted by all that the fate of Isabella of Bourbon would be decided in the South; and the rest of the country awaited anxiously the result of the conflict in Andalusia. The Minister of War exerted himself to the utmost in organizing from the material at his disposal the army corps which, under the orders of the Marquis of Novaliches, was to operate against the forces of General Serrano, Duke de la Torre. On the 27th, Novaliches had at his orders 16 battalions of infantry, 14 squadrons of cavalry, 1 brigade of artillery with 32 pieces, or in all about 9000 men and 1200 horses. One regiment of hussars was commanded by the Count of Girgenti, the husband of the Infanta Isabella and son-in-law of the Queen. The royal army was intrenched upon the right bank of the Guadalquivir and in control of the defiles of the Sierra Morena.

The army collected by the Duke de la Torre, who had hastened from Seville to Cordova, occupied the left bank of the Guadalquivir. It was composed of 17 battalions of infantry, 8 squadrons of cavalry, and 24 pieces of artillery, in addition to civil guards and irregular volunteers. The army of the Government was inferior in infantry, but on the other hand had a material advantage over that of Serrano by its great superiority in cavalry and artidery, — the 24 pieces of the latter being Krupp guns of much longer reach and greater accuracy than the bronze eight-centimetre guns of the insurgents. Determined to exhaust all measures for arriving at an amicable settlement before fighting, General Serrano, on September 27, sent the poet, Adelardo Lopez de Ayala, as envoy to Novaliches with a letter, in which he recited the names of the towns which had joined the movement, and called attention to the in advisability of exciting by resistance passions hitherto restrained.

" In the name of humanity and your own conscience," said the letter, "I beg of you to allow me to prosecute the march upon which I have resolved. I urge you to unite yourself to the troops under my command, so as not to deprive your own soldiers of the glory of helping to assure the honour and liberty of their country." Novaliches received the messen ger with courtesy, and sent an answer expressing his regret that Serrano should be at the head of the in surgent forces and that old comrades should have to cross bayonets. This, he continued, could only be avoided by recognising the existing order of things, and whatever the result might be, it was not he who had provoked the conflict. After this exchange of correspondence, on the same day, the Marquis of Novaliches received a telegram from the President of the Council of Ministers at Madrid, announcing that the situation on the Medi terranean coast, where Prim had appeared before Valencia, made it absolutely necessary that he should obtain an immediate victory.

The traveller on the line from Madrid to Cordova may to-day see the bridge of Alcolea, which spans the Guadalquivir at about six miles from the latter city. Even from the window of his railway carriage, he has time to observe the difference in the formation of the land on the two sides of the river. The right bank is a level plain; on the left the spurs of the Sierra Morena extend to the river and make a broken country, covered with trees and difficult of approach. The bridge is of stone, has nineteen arches, and is about 340 metres in length. It is not constructed in a straight line, but makes an obtuse angle with the current of the river, — a construction which rescues it from an enfilade of artillery. The plan of the commander-in-chief of the royal army was to advance on both sides of Guadalquivir toward Cordova, after having secured possession of the bridge.

He therefore ordered General de la Vega to advance with the cavalry and seize the bridge, and Brigadier-General Lacy, with a battalion of infantry, to cross the river at Montoro, advance to Villafranca, a town about six miles from the bridge, and there to form a junction with other troops. This plan, based upon the capture of the bridge, was of necessity changed when it was discovered by the Royalists that the bridge was already held by the Liberals. General de la Vega instead of advancing was forced to fall back upon Carpio. Novaliches now determined to attack the bridge in front with all his forces, in order to draw the army of Serrano down to the river, away from the slopes of the Sierra Morena; this would enable Lacy to descend upon the right wing of the enemy. Such a modification of the original plan required that reinforcements be sent to Lacy, who would not have sufficient forces to exe cute the new commission assigned to him.

General Echeverria was ordered to support him with four battalions, and to take command of the operations on the left side of the river. In order to give him time to arrive at his destination, a halt of the main body was ordered. Lacy had left Villafranca on the 28th at day break, and had taken possession of the heights on the right bank, in front of those already held by the enemy. He could see the movements of the army of Novaliches, but knew nothing of the occupation of the bridge of Alcolea by the enemy nor of the orders given to Echeverria. The detention of the main body and the apparent inactivity of the commander in-chief caused him great inquietude, for extraordi nary commotion was observed in the hostile camp, and the whistle of the locomotives announced the arrival of reinforcements, while enthusiastic shouts of " Long live Serrano !

" showed the presence of the Duke de la Torre. Believing that his road was obstructed by superior forces, he determined to make no attempt to advance. At two o'clock in the afternoon a message was brought that General Serrano desired an interview with him. In this interview the commander of the Liberal army called attention to the difficult position of Lacy's slender forces between the river and his own army, showed how easy it would be to crush him by advancing upon him with all his troops, and invited him to join in the movement, as the most heroic efforts would be impotent to defend the throne of Isabella against the arms of the entire nation. Lacy replied that he had no authority to come to any decision on the proposition, but that he would report the communication to the Marquis of Novaliches.

At the close of the interview Serrano stated that he had done everything to avoid bloodshed; that he would not begin the attack, and that Lacy might retire or remain as he saw fit. At the moment of Lacy's return to camp he was informed of the arrival of General Echeverria, who sent word to the Duke de la Torre that he was going to begin the attack in spite of the numerous forces against him. He stated that he gave this notification in return for the chiv alrous treatment of Lacy. Serrano now concluded that the time for generosity was past, and determined to attempt to dispose of Echeverria before receiving the onset of the main body of the enemy. He there fore ordered the whole of the first division of the army to attack the Royalists' position ; and the en gagement itegan on the right bank of the Guadal quivir, between this division and the battalions of Echeverria and Lacy.

Since the day was already far advanced, Novaliches had determined not to begin the battle until the fol lowing morning, when the sound of the firing informed him that the division of Echeverria was already engaged. He then hastened with all his forces along the left bank of the Guadalquivir in the direction of the bridge of Alcolea. When he arrived at the bridge, it was almost four o'clock in the afternoon. In drawing up his forces for the battle, he placed in the first line all his artillery, supported by the battal ions of the second infantry division. On his wings was the cavalry, ready to charge in case the Revolu tionary forces should cross the bridge and deploy in the open plain. Superiority in artillery gave the first advantage to the Royalists, and the fire of the Liberals began to decline through lack of ammunition.

Desirous of sustaining this advantage, Novaliches resolved to force the bridge at the point of the bayonet, and for this purpose he formed his infantry into four attacking columns, which were to be supported by the cavalry and artillery. Night had already fallen when the first column advanced at ordinary pace ; but, unfortunately for the royal troops, a burning farm house in the neighbourhood illuminated the bridge. The company at the head of the column gave way under the terrible discharge of musketry which greeted its advance. Novaliches himself, surrounded by his staff, then placed himself at the head of the column, and with the cry of "Long live the Queen! " led in person the second charge upon the bridge. The second charge was repulsed as the first had been, and the Marquis of Novaliches was himself dangerously wounded.