Political Catholicism in Spain's Second Republic
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
POLITICAL CATHOLICISM IN SPAIN’S SECOND REPUBLIC (1931–1936): THE CONFEDERACIÓN ESPAÑOLA DE DERECHAS AUTÓNOMAS IN MADRID, SEVILLE, AND TOLEDO By SAMUEL M. PIERCE A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 2007 1 © 2007 Samuel M. Pierce 2 For Laura and Abbie Tough 3 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS My advisor, George Esenwein, provided much support and advice as I worked to complete this study. I am grateful for his time, counsel, and occasional prodding, which have helped to improve its quality immeasurably. My original committee members, Tim Rees, Thomas Gallant, Brian Ward and Montserrat Alás-Brún, all contributed significantly to my intellectual development. I thank Peter Bergmann and Robert Zieger for stepping in to replace Professors Gallant and Ward, who left Florida for positions in other departments. Geraldine Nichols stepped in very late to replace Professor Alás-Brún, whose serious illness made it impossible for her to continue in her role. Michael Seidman, Nigel Townson, and Martin Blinkhorn for their helpful discussions. In Spain, I must especially thank Julio Gil Pecharromán whose kind guidance helped me navigate the paths of Spanish archives. José Ramón Montero also took time from his busy schedule to meet with me, and Leandro Alvarez Rey provided helpful guidance in Seville. The research and writing of this study were partially financed by the Fulbright Commission and the University of Florida Department of History. In addition, the Fulbright Commission helped my family find its way in Spain. The staffs of the various archives I consulted provided valuable assistance in accessing key source material. I am very grateful to my family. My parents, Frank and Rosemary, provided material and moral support. All three of my brothers have also been supportive of my work. I am especially indebted to my brother Marc, who explained to me the mystical world of graduate school and read drafts of all but one chapter. Most of all, I owe much to my wife Laura, whose editing assistance in the final stages of writing has been an invaluable asset. She also crossed an ocean, learned a language, and shared with me the highs and lows of writing a dissertation while raising a child, and I cannot imagine having done it without her. 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...............................................................................................................4 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS..........................................................................................................7 ABSTRACT.....................................................................................................................................9 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................11 2 CATHOLIC REACTION TO THE REPUBLIC: ACCION NACIONAL, 1931–1932 ........27 Catholicism in Spain before the Republic, 1891–1931 ..........................................................29 Initial Catholic Reaction to the Republic................................................................................34 The First Cortes Elections ......................................................................................................43 From Temporary Alliance to Permanent Entity .....................................................................50 The Establishment of AN in Seville .......................................................................................57 Repression and Growth...........................................................................................................61 Toward the Sanjurjada............................................................................................................68 3 FROM OPPOSITION TO VICTORY: THE ORGANIZATION OF THE CEDA ...............72 The Monarchist Split ..............................................................................................................73 Building the CEDA.................................................................................................................83 Electoral Success and Party Growth.......................................................................................90 Political Opposition and Internal Divisions during 1933 .......................................................98 The November 1933 Cortes Elections..................................................................................104 4 APEX: THE CEDA IN PARLIAMENT ..............................................................................112 In Parliament but out of Government: The Minoría Popular Agraria.................................113 Strikes and Rallies ................................................................................................................123 Internal and External Conflicts.............................................................................................128 The CEDA in Government ...................................................................................................134 Conflict Renewed: The CEDA and Its Political Enemies in Early 1935 .............................140 The Apogee of the CEDA’s Power and Influence................................................................146 5 HASTENING THE END, 1935–7 .......................................................................................152 The Beginnings of Collapse: Autumn 1935 .........................................................................153 Pre-electoral Propaganda......................................................................................................157 February 1936 Parliamentary Elections................................................................................160 Post-election Troubles ..........................................................................................................167 Conspiracy against the Republic ..........................................................................................177 5 The CEDA and the Civil War...............................................................................................181 6 “DISTINGUISHED LADIES” AND “DAUGHTERS OF THE HEART”: WOMEN IN THE CEDA...........................................................................................................................186 Organization and Growth .....................................................................................................188 The CEDA’s Vision of Womanhood....................................................................................196 Women in the CEDA............................................................................................................203 Asistencia Social...................................................................................................................208 Elections (1933)....................................................................................................................216 Elections (1936)....................................................................................................................226 7 “FOR THE PATRIA AND FOR GOD”: THE JUVENTUD DE ACCION POPULAR........231 Youth and Politics: The Formation of the JAP.....................................................................233 The JAP and Fascism............................................................................................................242 El Escorial.............................................................................................................................246 After El Escorial ...................................................................................................................253 Movilización Civil................................................................................................................258 Mass Meetings and Discarded Plans: The JAP in 1935 .......................................................260 Collapse and Civil War.........................................................................................................268 8 CATHOLIC WORKERS IN THE REPUBLIC: ACCION OBRERISTA.............................274 Building a Right-Wing Worker Party...................................................................................275 Tension and Cooperation between AO and the CEDA ........................................................282 “Yellow” Syndicalism ..........................................................................................................289 Ideology ................................................................................................................................295 Acción Obrerista and the Far Left........................................................................................302 9 CONCLUSION.....................................................................................................................309 BIBLIOGRAPHY........................................................................................................................314 Archives................................................................................................................................314 Newspapers and Periodicals .................................................................................................314 Books and Articles................................................................................................................315