At least democracy was not the issue: Basque parliamentarians during the making of the First Spanish Republic, 1873–74

Abstract

SUMMARYThe history of the European states in the nineteenth century relates to how processes of ‘parliamentarization’ took place that were not always accompanied by processes of ‘democratization’. This leads us to the following question: Was democracy their goal? A good example can be found in the political development of Spain from the 1868 revolution to 1874, a period that has been called the ‘Democratic Sexennium’. This revolution led Spain into a process that involved an attempt at democratization which culminated in the proclamation of the First Republic. The First Spanish Republic was based on a democratic parliament and constitution. In this article a prosopographic study is conducted of a specific group of parliamentarians – those from the Basque Country – who took part in the debates during the First Republic. The results of this study serve as a typical example of the participation of parliamentarians in democratization processes in the nineteenth century and they show the relationship between discourse and parliamentary practice in that period. Prosopographic analysis and the use of thematic prosopography enable us to ascertain the profile of those democratically elected parliamentarians and the issues that most concerned them. Additionally, the debate that emerged on the limits of democracy in wartime is highlighted, owing to the fact that Spain was immersed in a civil war during this period and the Spanish Parliament had to take decisions and act in adverse circumstances.