Primo de Rivera dates

Beginning of the restoration political system

1874

de Rivera staged a coup in Barcelona

13 September 1923

Peninsular War

1807-1814

National Assembly in Cadiz for equal rights and sovereignty

1810

Constitution establishing the ‘Spanish Nation’ as a national, constitutional parliamentarian and Catholic body

1812

National education system created

1857

Literacy rate was 59%

1900

National flag of Spain created

1843

Creation of Civil Governors

1844

Creation of a Civil Guard and Penal Code

1848

Creation of a Civil Code

1889

Creation of a national anthem

1908

Provinces established and local governments unified

1833-1849

Spanish-American War

1898

Professional military officers advocated for modernisation through an authoritarian state

1898

The Maurist newspaper ‘La Accion’ called for a military dictatorship and welcomed Mussolini’s takeover of Italy

1922

The nation became socially and politically dominant opposed to the regions

1900-1920

Party elites used symbols to generate a united identity and gain mass support

by 1923

de Rivera brought his coup forward after demands for home rule and violent clashes broke out in Barcelona at celebrations for Catalonia’s national day

11 September 1923

Primo declared a state of war in Catalonia, a group of general formed a provisional Junta in Madrid

12-13 September 1923

King Alfonso XIII declared support for Primo and dismissed the constitutional government

14 September 1923

Primo met with King Alfonso in Madrid and was declared head of the Military Directory, given executive and legislative powers

15 September 1923

The Military Directory

1923-1925

‘La Nación’ newspaper newspaper launched in the provinces

19 October 1925

Political Party Journal ‘Union Patriotica’ claimed to have a circulation of 55,000

By 1926

Censorship of publications began, followed by censorship of telephone and telegraph

1924

Royal decrees reorganised central administration along military lines

12 September and 10 October 1923

Youth sections were created to shape the ‘soul of the Spanish Youth’

1925

Victory in Morocco after a French invasion occurred

1925

A royal decree awarded Primo the highest military distinction

6 October 1925

de Rivera and King Alfonso visited the Pope

1923

de Rivera proclaimed his vision of central, authoritarian state

1926

de Rivera planned a new way to administrate the regions, wanting them to be strong but patriotic, plan then abandoned

14 September 1923

A royal decree dissolved town councils, put towns under military control

30 September 1923

Municipal Statute formed by Jose Calvo Sotelo whereby 1/3 of town councils had to be elected by corporations to ensure ‘corporate representation’

8 March 1924

Provincial Statute by Sotelo which linked the municipalities and the state, using diputaciones controlled by Civil Governors to control municipalities

21 March 1925

The right wing sought regional decentralisation, as they believed the region was the essence of the nation so key to regeneration

Prior to 1923

Carlists denounced the Military Directory’s centralist policies, were widely arrested

1 April 1925

Lliga (Catalan regionalist movement) removed support when Rivera refused to increase Catalan home rule

January 1924

Lliga regarded an enemy within

By 1925

Royal decree against separatism announced

18 September 1923

Procession to the shrine of Catalanism was forbidden

July 1924

Rivera responded to a letter from the president of the Sociedad Economica Barcelonesa demanding the abolition of the decree against separatism by declaring it was the state’s duty to protect the ‘common language’

30 November 1923

Madrid intellectuals published a letter expressing support for the Catalan language

1924

Royal orders sanctioned against teachers who did not teach in Castilian

October 1925 and June 1926

Most of the elite supported River’s regime as it was based on removing the old oligarchy and attacking dangers to the nation

By 1925

The Civilian Directory

1926-1930

Plebiscite for confidence in Rivera’s dictatorship and desire of a National Assembly

11-13 September 1926

King Alfonso XIII signed the decree which formed the National Assembly

September 1927

First section of the National Assembly drafted a constitution but it was widely rejected

July 1929

Semi-state banks established including the Banco Exterior de Espania

1928

Sotelo announced plans for tax reform but Rivera was forced to abandon the plans

1926

Rivera declared intentions for land reform so lost support from the rural elite

1928

the peseta plummeted and employers demanded an end to arbitration committees but Primo refused to do so

1929

Sotelo resigned

4 January 1930

UP created in Barcelona to legitimise the regime, included a broad range of political groups

1924

Every district of Madrid had a propaganda and political action commission, each with sub-committees

By 1927

Regime claimed 1.3 million people were affiliated to Rivera’s party

1927

On the anniversary of Primo taking over, 100,000 peopled marched in Madrid, having been given free train tickets

13 September 1928

Rivera formed a branch of the press and censorship cabinet charged with centralising propaganda, led by Maiximo Cuervo

1928

Ibero-American exhibitions held to attract positive international attention but failed as political opposition deterred international visitors

1928

Loss of Social Catholic support

1928

Official records showed that 46% of potential recruits never joined the army

1914-1923

Course held in Toledo to teach army officers how to educate civilians in patriotic ideas

March 1929

a royal decree established a military academy at Zaragoza to unify military doctrine with General Franco as the leader

20 February 1927

Military Academy at Zaragova closed under the Second Republic

1931

royal decree extended conscription (less exemptions) and formed a strong reserved corp

29 March 1924

only 220 officers and 200 sergeants graduated as instructors of physical education in the military = low economic output

1919-1927

‘Patriotic lectures’ and public celebrations held for the anniversary of the dictatorship

13 September 1924

a royal decree authorised a campaign to plant ‘moral and patriotic’ ideas into the rural lower class

29 January 1926

Only 50% of municipalities held lectures to spread patriotism

By 1926

Inspectors used as subordinates to delegates to examine textbooks and students, checking for teaching against patriotism

1925

Anido set up an intelligence network to spy on education inspectors

1926

Rivera began the creation of a national textbook for primary education

From 1923

Royal academy of historians instructed to produce books for the regime; however the first book was not in schools until 1930 after the regime ended

1926

royal decree creating the fiesta del Libro (day of the Spanish book)

1926

Government agency set up to coordinate state funds for school construction, put schools under the state’s direct control

1924

General Director of Primary Education Ignacio Suarez Somonte calculated that 2000 new schools needed to be built

By 1926

Spanish population boom

1910s

Money spent on education increased from 1.5 million to 14.5 million per year

Between 1920 and 1929

General Bureau of secondary and university education created to censor liberal who dominated such institutes, bring education fully under state control

1925

royal decree to direct teaching toward modernisation and increasing economic output, emphasised Spanish Imperial History

August 1925

Books on Spanish Civilisation finally distributed, many teaches continued using other resources

1929

Demonstrations held in response to university reforms at all universities bar Saragossa leading to government repression and the resignation of prominent intellectual Fernando de los Rios

1928

Nation Physical Culture Committee formed, directed by General Villalba, citizenry education for adults and gymnastics for youth

1928

Course created to prepare officers for educating the masses

1929

Only 267 officers for educating the masses, 50% of judicial districts without an officer assigned

By January 1930

Royal decree extending the Somaten (civil guard to protect property and repress unions) from Catalonia to all of Spain

17 September 1923

Rivera met Mussolini, claimed the Somaten and Fascist militia were both ‘secular institutions of civilised order’ and that he would follow the Fascist example

November 1923

General Barrera proclaimed the Somaten was the protector of Spain

December 1923

Trade unions used a car bomb during a Somaten celebration parade

April 1923

Hostility against the regime increased as amnesty was given to somatens convicted of crimes

1927

Somaten was ineffective during rebellions leading Rivera to reform it

1926

Somaten National Council created to expand the militia and increase its effectiveness

1927

Jose Guerra led a violent uprising against the directory but the Somaten hardly responded, changed their role to espionage

1929

Rivera abolished the Mancomunitat in Catalonia which had made it a commonwealth of four provinces

1925

Rivera closed down the University of Barcelona during riots

April 1929

Catalan Saint ‘The Virgin of Monteserrat’ declared a patron saint of the Somatens to deprive Catalonia of a unique identity, unsuccessful

1923

Publications in Catalan had increased and 10% of all books published in Spain were in Catalan

By 1930