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This electronic thesis or dissertation has been downloaded from Explore Bristol Research, http://research-information.bristol.ac.uk Author: Padilla Angulo, Fernando J Title: Volunteers of the Spanish Empire (1855-1898) General rights Access to the thesis is subject to the Creative Commons Attribution - NonCommercial-No Derivatives 4.0 International Public License. A copy of this may be found at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/legalcode This license sets out your rights and the restrictions that apply to your access to the thesis so it is important you read this before proceeding. Take down policy Some pages of this thesis may have been removed for copyright restrictions prior to having it been deposited in Explore Bristol Research. However, if you have discovered material within the thesis that you consider to be unlawful e.g. breaches of copyright (either yours or that of a third party) or any other law, including but not limited to those relating to patent, trademark, confidentiality, data protection, obscenity, defamation, libel, then please contact [email protected] and include the following information in your message: •Your contact details •Bibliographic details for the item, including a URL •An outline nature of the complaint Your claim will be investigated and, where appropriate, the item in question will be removed from public view as soon as possible. VOLUNTEERS OF THE SPANISH EMPIRE (1855-1898) Fernando J. Padilla Angulo A dissertation submitted to the University of Bristol in accordance with the requirements for award of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Arts. School of Modern Languages July 2018 Word Count: 71,269 ABSTRACT Volunteers of the Empire (1855-1898) explores the history of the Volunteer units that existed in Cuba, Puerto Rico, Santo Domingo, and the Philippines during the second half of the 19th century. These units were closely associated with the continuity of Spanish sovereignty, and to understandings of the empire as an extension of the Spanish Nation. The Volunteers have traditionally been considered the private militia of the Spanish colonial elite, politically conservative, and made up almost exclusively of Spaniards from the metropolis, the so-called peninsulares. This thesis challenges this view and explores the history of the Volunteers in a new light. Principally drawing on unpublished documents consulted in Spain, Cuba, and Puerto Rico (encompassing military records, letters, and memoirs), this thesis explores four main aspects: the reasons that motivated the creation of the Volunteers, the participation of colonial societies, the Volunteers’ relationship with the Spanish authorities, and their social and political cohesion. In a major revision of the existing historiography, this thesis demonstrates that both peninsulares and creoles participated in the Volunteers. This heterogeneity meant that the Volunteers’ relationship with the Spanish authorities fluctuated between loyalty and confrontation depending on the challenges posed to the colonial statu quo by the colonial policy designed in Madrid. The Volunteers were also diverse in social (there were peninsulares and creoles, working-class, middle-class and affluent members), and political terms. Conservatives, liberals, republicans, and socialists filled their ranks. The cohesive principle of the Volunteers resided in adherence to the idea of the Spanish Nation’s unity, rather than in loyalty to the imperial authorities. This thesis argues that the Volunteers can be held to represent the ambivalent relationship between Nation and Empire, something which is still poorly understood in the Spanish case despite recent advances. It reveals the existence of a loyalist sentiment among significant sectors of the colonial societies, inviting us to reconsider the political and social dimensions of the struggles for independence in the Spanish colonies. II ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First of all, I would like to thank my parents. Without their support, all of this would have been impossible. I would also like to thank the University of Bristol and the University of Exeter for having granted me a full scholarship back in April 2013 on “Global History”, which has allowed me to take this intellectual and personal journey. Reading, researching and writing for this thesis has truly been an adventure which has taken me to four countries and two continents following the steps of the Volunteers. In this regard, I would like to thank the Santander Bank for having granted me two travel grants in 2014 and 2015 to conduct research in Cuba and Puerto Rico. The following pages have been written between Bristol, Madrid, Havana, San Juan de Puerto Rico, Barcelona, and Sitges, my hometown in Spain. Thanks to these research travels, not only my intellectual curiosity, but my personal life, has been enriched by wonderful people I have had the fortune to meet and befriend. My most sincere gratitude goes to my supervisors, Dr. Paco Romero and Dr. Matthew Brown from the University of Bristol. Their guidance and professional advice are only comparable to their generosity, kindness and humanity. Going through the process of building this thesis has been a big challenge for reasons not always academic. Their support has been fundamental in overcoming all these difficulties. As historians and human beings, they have become examples to me. I would also like to thank Dr. Kristofer Allerfeldt, my supervisor at the University of Exeter, for his generosity, solicitude and advice. His human qualities far exceed the norms expected in such relationships forged within institutions. I am sure we will be able to collaborate more closely on future projects. Researching and writing for this thesis has required long hours in archives and libraries. I would like to show my gratitude to all the staff that has patiently assisted my requests. In Spain, I want to especially thank the staff of Madrid’s Archivo General Militar (most especially Captain Pacheco, whose generosity and sense of duty are rarely seen, and Luis and Carmen), Archivo de la Fundación Antonio Maura (Alfonso Berenguer and Carmen Rivera), Archivo Histórico Nacional, Biblioteca Nacional de España, and the library of the Ateneo de Madrid. I would also like to thank Xavier Miret from Sitges’ Arxiu Històric Municipal. In Cuba, I am especially indebted to mi prima Ana Margarita Bestard, Taisuki, and Amarilys Maura from the Biblioteca Nacional. Despite all the hardships of Cuban life and my endless requests, their professionalism, kindness and generosity to me was priceless. In Puerto Rico I am most grateful to Marisel Flores, Juan Carlos Román and III Fernando Cervera from the Archivo General. They not only assisted me professionally, but also showed me the beauties and the complex reality of the island. I am happy to call them friends now. I would also like to thank Josué Caamaño from the Centro de Investigaciones Históricas de la Universidad de Puerto Rico, for having allowed me to consult the impressive digitized archive of this institution. In the United Kingdom, I am also thankful to the staff of the Arts and Social Sciences Library of the University of Bristol. Discussing and exchanging ideas also plays a fundamental role in building a thesis. In this sense, beyond my supervisors, I must confess I have been truly enriched by the long conversations with my friends and colleagues Gerardo J. Arriaga, Dr. Bárbara Castillo, Aggelis Zarokostas, Joan-Xavier Quintana i Segalà, Dr. Gonzalo Velasco, Jorge Batista, Juan Carlos Román, Dr. Alberto Martí, Edwin Sierra, Gaël García, and Juan Neves. I would like to give thanks for the advice and exchange of ideas to professors Dr. Albert García Balañá, Dr David Sartorius, Dr. Louis A. Pérez, Dr. Luis Martínez-Fernández, Dr. Martín Rodrigo, Dr. José Gregorio Cayuela, and the late Dr. Fernando Picó. I am also deeply indebted to Fernando Puell de la Villa for inviting me to the 2017 Spanish Military History Association conference in Madrid and offering me the possibility to publish some of the research I have done for this thesis. I also thank my colleague Dr. Alessandro Bonvini for having allowed me to present my thesis results at a seminar in Salerno (Italy) in January 2018. I am sure more projects in common are to come. I am also grateful to the descendants of Volunteers who have generously shared with me their family stories, and even documents. In this regard, I am truly indebted to Lindy Usera Fernández from Puerto Rico, Lluís Riudor Gorgas from Sitges and most especially my friend Osvaldo Betancourt, from Camagüey. Listening to his stories alongside our friends Rosa María and Jorge, I have learnt much about Cuba during our desayunos cubanos in Sitges, where they settled long ago escaping from the lack of freedom in their former home. I truly admire their dignity and love for liberty. Last but not least, I am sincerely thankful to Warren Greig, who apart from honouring me with his friendship, has brushed this text up, making it readable for the English speaker. IV AUTHOR’S DECLARATION I declare that the work in this dissertation was carried out in accordance with the requirements of the University’s Regulations and Code of Practice for Research Degree Programmes and that it has not been submitted for any other academic award. Except where indicated by specific reference in the text, the work is the candidate’s own work. Work done in collaboration with, or with the assistance of others, is indicated as such. Any views expressed in the dissertation are those of the author. SIGNED: DATE: 23rd July 2018 V TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract II Acknowledgements III Author’s Declaration V Author’s Note IX Introduction 1 Chapter I. An Overview of the Volunteers 12 1. What did a Volunteer do? 14 2. Who were the Volunteers? 18 2.1. Cuba 19 2.2. Puerto Rico 23 2.3. Santo Domingo 25 2.4.