The Liberal Union ( es, Unión Liberal) was a

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...

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in the third quarter of the 19th century. It was founded by

Leopoldo O'Donnell Leopoldo O'Donnell y Jorris, 1st Duke of Tetuán, Grandee, GE (12 January 1809 – 5 November 1867), was a Spanish general and Grandee who was Prime Minister of Spain on several occasions. Early life He was born at Santa Cruz de Tenerife in t ...

in 1858 with the intent of forging a compromise and taking a centrist position between the two forces that had hitherto dominated Spanish politics during the reign of

Isabella II Isabella II ( es, Isabel II; 10 October 1830 – 9 April 1904), was Queen of Spain from 29 September 1833 until 30 September 1868. Shortly before her birth, the King Ferdinand VII of Spain issued a Pragmatic Sanction to ensure the successi ...

. On one side were the forces of

conservative liberalism Conservative liberalism or right-liberalism is a variant of liberalism, combining liberal values and policies with conservative stances, or simply representing the right-wing of the liberal movement. M. Gallagher, M. Laver and P. Mair, ''Repre ...

known as the ''doceañistas'', arrayed around the

Moderate Party The Moderate Party ( sv, Moderata samlingspartiet , ; M), commonly referred to as the Moderates ( ), is a liberal-conservative political party in Sweden. The party generally supports tax cuts, the free market, civil liberties and economic liber ...

. Among their leading figures were the

queen mother A queen mother is a former queen, often a queen dowager, who is the mother of the reigning monarch. The term has been used in English since the early 1560s. It arises in hereditary monarchies in Europe and is also used to describe a number of ...

Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies ( it, Maria Cristina Ferdinanda di Borbone, Principessa delle Due Sicilie, es, link=no, María Cristina de Borbón, Princesa de las Dos Sicilias; 27 April 1806 – 22 August 1878) was Queen of Spain from 182 ...

and General

Ramón María Narváez Ramón María Narváez y Campos, 1st Duke of Valencia (5 August 180023 April 1868) was a Spanish general and statesman who served as Prime Minister on several occasions during the reign of Isabella II. He was also known in Spain as ''El Espad� ...

. On the other were radical liberal ''exaltados'' or ''veinteañistas'' arrayed around the

Progressive Party Progressive Party may refer to: Active parties * Progressive Party, Brazil * Progressive Party (Chile) * Progressive Party of Working People, Cyprus * Dominica Progressive Party * Progressive Party (Iceland) * Progressive Party (Sardinia), Ita ...

and the National Militia. Among their leading figures was General Baldomero Espartero. Both parties had fought on the same side in the

Carlist Wars The Carlist Wars () were a series of civil wars that took place in Spain during the 19th century. The contenders fought over claims to the throne, although some political differences also existed. Several times during the period from 1833 to 187 ...

, but they had also at times fought against one another, and elements of the Moderate Party leaned toward

absolute monarchy Absolute monarchy (or Absolutism as a doctrine) is a form of monarchy in which the monarch rules in their own right or power. In an absolute monarchy, the king or queen is by no means limited and has absolute power, though a limited constitut ...

themselves. O'Donnell's intent was to bring together the non-absolutist Moderates and the less "exalted" (radical) Progressives and to occupy the political center. He first came forward with this program in September 1854 a few months after the end of the 10-year reign of the Moderates, but did not succeed in forming a party at that time. The Liberal Union was more of a pragmatic party than an

ideological An ideology is a set of beliefs or philosophies attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely epistemic, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones." Formerly applied prim ...

one. They wished to preserve the

Spanish monarchy , coatofarms = File:Coat_of_Arms_of_Spanish_Monarch.svg , coatofarms_article = Coat of arms of the King of Spain , image = Felipe_VI_in_2020_(cropped).jpg , incumbent = Felipe VI , incumbentsince = 19 Ju ...

but to oppose absolutism; to reform

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and favor

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; to offer a certain degree of a

multi-party system In political science, a multi-party system is a political system in which multiple political parties across the political spectrum run for national elections, and all have the capacity to gain control of government offices, separately or in coal ...

, with room for both Moderates and Progressives; and to have a policy of strong public investment. They also intended to reform the law of the press, but this never came to fruition. After the elections to the

Cortes Cortes, Cortés, Cortês, Corts, or Cortès may refer to: People * Cortes (surname), including a list of people with the name ** Hernán Cortés (1485–1547), a Spanish conquistador Places * Cortes, Navarre, a village in the South border of ...

20 September 1858, the Liberal Union had a majority of seats; it maintained power continuously until the

Glorious Revolution The Glorious Revolution; gd, Rèabhlaid Ghlòrmhor; cy, Chwyldro Gogoneddus , also known as the ''Glorieuze Overtocht'' or ''Glorious Crossing'' in the Netherlands, is the sequence of events leading to the deposition of King James II and ...

of 1868 ushered in the ''

Sexenio Democrático The Sexenio Democrático or Sexenio Revolucionario (English: The six democratic or revolutionary years) is a period of 6 years between 1868 and 1874 in the history of Spain. The ''Sexenio Democrático'' starts on 30 September 1868 with the over ...

''. The Liberal Union centered on O'Donnell and the iron hand of his Minister of Governance,

José Posada Herrera José Posada Herrera (Llanes, Asturias, 31 March 1814 – 7 September 1885) was a Spanish jurist and politician, Prime Minister of Spain, President of the Council of Ministers 1883–1884. He was a member of the :es:Izquierda Dinástica, Dynast ...

. Other prominent figures were Francisco Serrano Domínguez, Juan Manuel de Manzanedo,

Juan Prim Juan Prim y Prats, 1st Count of Reus, 1st Marquis of los Castillejos, 1st Viscount of Bruch (; ca, Joan Prim i Prats ; 6 December 1814 – 30 December 1870) was a Spanish general and statesman who was briefly Prime Minister of Spain until ...

, Manuel Silvela, and

Antonio Cánovas del Castillo Antonio Cánovas del Castillo (8 February 18288 August 1897) was a Spanish politician and historian known principally for serving six terms as Prime Minister and his overarching role as "architect" of the regime that ensued with the 1874 restor ...

. These people, like the party's supporters in general, came from a broad, though largely elite, set of backgrounds: nobles, lawyers, entrepreneurs, merchants, bankers, military officers and government functionaries. To influence public opinion, the Liberal Union had several newspapers: '' La Época'', '' El Diario Español'' and '' La Correspondencia de España''.

Notes

References

* Martínez Gallego, Francesc. ''Conservar progresando: la Unión Liberal (1856-1868)''. Valencia, 2001. . {{Authority control Liberal parties in Spain Political parties established in 1858 1874 disestablishments in Spain Defunct political parties in Spain 1858 establishments in Spain Political parties disestablished in 1874

See also

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