Constituția Spaniei revoluționare – La Pepa 1812
Apr 10th, 2012 by admin
Am scris despre constituția cunoscută sub numele de La Pepa nu pentru că anul acesta s-au împlinit 200 de ani de la redactarea ei, am scris pentru faptul că puțină lume cunoaște că este prima constiuție definită ca liberală din lume. Importanța acersteia a fost covârșitoare, fiind așezată la temelia principalelor constituții europene și a celor din America de Sud. Materialul a fost destinat unui seminar internațional din această cauză este redactat în engleză.
2012 marks the bicentenary of the first Spanish Constitution, which Spain treasures in much the same way as England does its Magna Charta. The historic document was published by the Cortes of Cádiz on 19th March 1812, with the country in the midst of the Spanish War of Independence. We celbrate the bicentenary of the enacting of Spain’s first, and the world’s fourth, modern constitution, known as la Pepa because it was passed on Saint Joseph’s Day. (Pepe is the nickname for Joseph + “la” constitution is feminine in Spanish = Pepa.)
The history: Spanish War of Independence
By the year 1808 France had achieved domination over the great majority of continental Europe through victories at Ulm (1805) or Austerlitz (1805). In 1808 Napoleon created a new enemy holding by force the Spanish throne in favor of his brother Joseph. The events known as the Abdications of Bayonne in the spring of 1808, when Napoleon first forced Fernando VII to return the Spanish crown to his father, Carlos IV (who had previously abdicated in favor of his son in March of 1808 following the uprising at Aranjuez), and then Carlos IV to abdicate again to allow the Emperor to install his brother on the Spanish throne as José I, had left a vacuum of authority in the country.
Local and provincial juntas had been established in areas outside French control, and in September 1808, a Central Junta was set up to act as the maximum government authority during the absence of the legitimate king.
The burden of war destroyed the social and economic structure of Spain and led in an era of social turbulence, political instability and economic stagnation. Devastating civil wars between liberal and absolutist factions, led by officers trained in the Peninsular War, persisted in Spain until 1850.
In the meanwhill, the cumulative crises and disruptions of invasion, revolution and restoration led to the independence of many of Spain’s American colonies.
War and revolution against Napoleon’s occupation led in the end to the Spanish Constitution of 1812, later a cornerstone of European liberalism.
How the Spaniard give birth to La Pepa ?
Central Junta was forced to take refuge in Sevilla and then in January 1810 in Isla de León in Cádiz, today, San Fernando, where regency was named, and preparations began for a meeting of the Cortes, to act as a national legislative body in the absence of the monarch.
In the Napoleonic era junta was the name chosen by several local administrations formed in Spain during the Peninsular War as a patriotic alternative to the official administration toppled by the French invaders. The juntas were usually formed by adding prominent members of society, such as prelates, to the already-existing municipal councils.
By the beginning of 1810, the forces under the Central Junta’s command had suffered serious military defeats (the Battle of Ocaña, the Battle of Alba de Tormes) in which the French not only inflicted large losses on the Spanish, but also took control of southern Spain and forced the government to retreat to Cádiz, the last fortification available on Spanish soil. In light of this, the Central Junta dissolved itself on 29 January 1810 and set up a five-person Regency Council of Spain and the Indies, charged with convening the Cortes. Therefore the system of juntas was replaced by regency and the Cádiz Cortes, which established a permanent government.
The first session of the Cortes was held on 24th September 1810 on the Isla de León. Two main groups were formed among the deputies: the conservatives who supported maintaining the model of government prior to the outbreak of war, with absolute power residing in the person of the monarch; and the majority, the liberals, who supported going far beyond an interim government, with a new system of government designed to limit the power of the monarch and prevent corrupt rule.
Several basic principles were soon ratified: that sovereignty resides in the nation, the legitimacy of Ferdinand VII as King of Spain, and the inviolability of the deputies. With this, the first steps towards a political revolution had been taken, since prior to the Napoleonic intervention, Spain had been ruled as an absolute monarchy by the Bourbons and their Habsburg predecessors.
Liberal deputies were in the majority, and they wanted equality before the law, a centralized government, an efficient modern civil service, a reform of the tax system, the replacement of feudal privileges by freedom of contract, and the recognition of the property owner’s right to use his property as he saw fit.
As I mention allready the Cortes was not unanimous in its liberalism: the new constitution would reduce the power of the Crown, the Catholic Church (although Catholicism remained the state religion), and the nobility.
Representatives of the church and nobility constituted a minority of the Cortes, and some supporters of royal absolutism were also present.
The liberals, however, had both the majority and the implicit support of the British who were protecting the city against french troups. The representatives at Cádiz were far more liberal than the elite of Spain taken as a whole, and produced a document far more liberal than might have been produced in Spain were it not for the war.
So what is la Constitución, or “La Pepa” as commonly referred to, all about?
La Pepa was based on the enlightened liberalism of the French and American constitutions: freedom of speech and of the press, the right to education, equality before the law and universal male suffrage, with national sovereignty residing in the people rather than the monarch.
The landmark document is the most extensive of Spain’s constitutions (between 1812 and 1978 Spain actually had eight different constitutions), with 384 separate articles under 10 titles. It established sovereignty as residing in the nation, and the division of power into the legislative power – with a single parliamentary chamber – the judicial power, and the executive, with the monarch’s executive power limited by strict parliamentary control. A new administrative system was set up based on districts and provinces.
A limited vote was established, and individual rights to freedom, the press, education, and property were recognized. All citizens were seen as equal before the law. Catholicism was stated to be the only religious faith permitted, seen today as an article which was necessary to gain the support of the Church in the struggle against the French. The Inquisition was abolished.
We can give an example:
Article 371.- Every Spaniard possesses liberty to write, print and publish, his political ideas, without any previous license, permission or revision, under the restrictions and responsibility established by law.
Moreover, unlike the French Constitution, which only applied to all French-speaking citizens of France, the Spanish Constitution had a more universal character.
Some 70 of the more than 300 lawmakers present to sign the constitution travelled from the Americas to take part in the meetings.
The way ahead of La Pepa
La Pepa do not have an easy way ahead. Napoleon’s defeat and the restoration of Fernando VII to the throne put an end to the Constitution. Fernando refused to recognize the document, and issued a decree in 1814 dissolving the Cortes and abolishing all legislation passed in his absence.
But this was not the end of La Pepa.
Six years later, in 1820, a military uprising led to the constitution being proclaimed for a second time in a three-year period.
The King then revoked it again after French troops invaded in 1823 to restore Fernando to absolute power.
Incredibly though, La Pepa was able to make a third comeback in 1836, when it was restored by the Queen Maria Cristina de Bourbon, following her husband’s death in 1833.
La Pepa was succeeded by a new constitution in 1837, the second in Spain’s history, but it has not been forgotten.
Napoleon influence
The French Revolution shaped much of the western world. The military, social, economic, and political structures of today have their origins traced back to that time period. In particular, all of the countries which Napoleon Bonaparte and his family directly controlled were brought enormous changes. Spain was not left out of this, and felt the blow of the emperor the same as every other country around them. Napoleon had a specific influence on the future of Spain however, since his revolution ideals in the Napoleonic Code shaped the course of Spain’s political future.
Early in the 19th century the Emperor of France, Napoleon Bonaparte, was keen to spread his Napoleonic Code across the rest of Europe. The code, based on the Enlightenment principles of the French Revolution, replaced old feudal laws with a clearly written legal system, prohibit privileges based on birth, allowed freedom of religion, and specified that government jobs go to the most qualified.
Conclusion
Cadiz became a political school that influenced the Europe and the spanish colonies during the time. The story of La Pepa is important in that this was the first constitution of its kind the aim of which was to provide ordinary citizens with some form of constitutional protection from the excesses of a feudalist state. However despite its lack of immediate influence, La Pepa was an important document in the history of liberalism in Spain. It was also used as a model for liberal constitutions in Portugal and New World territories, who gained their independence from the Spanish crown in the early 19th century.
The Spanish Constitution of 1812 soon became a true symbol of democracy as it influenced the text of several other European constitutions and not only. It served as the model for the Norwegian Constitution of 1814, the Portuguese Constitution of 1822 and the Mexican one of 1824, and was implemented with minor modifications in various Italian states by the Carbonari during their revolt of 1820 and 1821.
“La Pepa” was the first Spanish constitution to establish popular sovereignty, the separation of powers, the freedom of expression and freedom of the press. In other words, two hundred years ago, the Spanish became pioneers when they implemented values, freedoms and civil rights in a tangible fashion that are unquestionable today and form an intrinsic part of the national identity.
Two centuries on and this historic milestone is being commemorated as an event that transformed Spain into a solid democracy.
The Constitution of 1812 is regarded as the founding document of liberalism in Spain and one of the first examples of classical liberalism or conservative liberalism worldwide. It came to be called the “sacred code” of the branch of liberalism.
I will end by remembering you the first words of La Pepa written 200 year ago:
The General and Extraordinary Cortes of the Spanish Nation, well convinced; after the most minute examination and mature deliberation, that the ancient fundamental laws of this Monarchy, aided by every precaution and authority, which can enable and insure their being permanently established and thoroughly carried into effect, are perfectly calculated to fulfil the grand object of promoting the glory, prosperity and welfare of the Spanish Nation; decree the following Political Constitution for the well governing and right administration of the State.