Spanish “Moderados” in the Middle of the 19th Century: Factional Contradictions and Struggle

Abstract

The article analyzes inter-factional contradictions and struggles in the Spanish party “Moderados” in the middle of the 19th century. The author proposes to structure this party as consisting of two wings: liberal-conservative (left flank) and traditionalist (right flank); and if the first is defined by him as the mainstream of the party, then the second is its periphery which is not always recognized in the historiography of the issue. The liberal-conservative wing is also divided into three factions which, although never institutionalized, nevertheless have their own “frontman” and a certain ideological and value range: thus, the author proposes to put F. Martinez de la Rosa, J. Bravo Murillo at the head of the right faction and A. Borrego Moreno at the head of the left faction. Having briefly traced the history of relationships between factions and identifying historically significant points of conflict, the author comes to the conclusion that the basis of their contradictions was the different ratio of liberal Liberty and conservative Order, which largely determined their inclination or disinclination to political violence and the degree of agreement with opponents.