Spanish Renovation ( es, Renovación Española, RE) was a Spanish

monarchist Monarchism is the advocacy of the system of monarchy or monarchical rule. A monarchist is an individual who supports this form of government independently of any specific monarch, whereas one who supports a particular monarch is a royalist. ...

political party active during the

Second Spanish Republic The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931, after the deposition of Alfonso XIII, King Alfonso XIII, and was di ...

, advocating the restoration of Alfonso XIII of Spain as opposed to

Carlism Carlism ( eu, Karlismo; ca, Carlisme; ; ) is a Traditionalist and Legitimist political movement in Spain aimed at establishing an alternative branch of the Bourbon dynasty – one descended from Don Carlos, Count of Molina (1788–1855) – ...

. Associated with the

Acción Española Acción Española (, ''Spanish Action'') or AE was a Spanish cultural association active during the Second Spanish Republic, meeting point of the ultraconservative and far right intellectual figures that endorsed the restoration of the Monarchy. It ...

think-tank, the party was led by

Antonio Goicoechea Antonio Goicoechea (21 January 1876, in Barcelona – 11 February 1953, in Madrid) was an Alfonsism, Alfonsine monarchist politician and lawyer in Spain during the period of the Second Spanish Republic and the Spanish Civil War. He started to beco ...

and

José Calvo Sotelo José Calvo Sotelo, 1st Duke of Calvo Sotelo, GE (6 May 1893 – 13 July 1936) was a Spanish jurist and politician, minister of Finance during the dictatorship of Miguel Primo de Rivera and a leading figure during the Second Republic. During t ...

. In 1937, during the course of the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...

, it formally disappeared after Francisco Franco merged the variety of far-right organizations in the rebel zone into a single party.

History

José Calvo Sotelo hablando en un mitin en el frontón Urumea (2 de 5) - Fondo Car-Kutxa Fototeka

The group was formed in January 1933 after Goicoechea and some followers split from Acción Popular and were given Alfonso's approval to form a new party, although from the outset RE maintained good relations with the Carlists and sought to bring them into various anti-Republican conspiracies. Even before the Civil War RE was linked to the

Falange The Falange Española Tradicionalista y de las Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional Sindicalista (FET y de las JONS; ), frequently shortened to just "FET", was the sole legal party of the Francoist regime in Spain. It was created by General Francisco F ...

, paying it a 10,000 peseta monthly subsidy. RE espoused a kind of authoritarian statist corporatism, particularly marked after Calvo Sotelo took control of the party. The group was one of the first amongst those involved in conspiracy against the

Popular Front A popular front is "any coalition of working-class and middle-class parties", including liberal and social democratic ones, "united for the defense of democratic forms" against "a presumed Fascist assault". More generally, it is "a coalition ...

government to endorse Franco as overall leader. RE was also closely linked to the military group Unión Militar Española which played an important role in bringing about civil war. During the opening stages of the civil war RE was close to General

Emilio Mola Emilio Mola y Vidal, 1st Duke of Mola, Grandee of Spain (9 July 1887 – 3 June 1937) was one of the three leaders of the Nationalist coup of July 1936, which started the Spanish Civil War. After the death of Sanjurjo on 20 July 1936, M ...

, who consulted regularly with the group's leadership. The assassination of Calvo Sotelo, who was much more personally popular and a better orator than the generally ineffectual Goicoechea, in July 1936 had weakened RE somewhat and before long they became wholly subservient to Franco in an attempt to retain influence for a group that had little popular support. Along with a variety of other

far right Far-right politics, also referred to as the extreme right or right-wing extremism, are political beliefs and actions further to the right of the left–right political spectrum than the standard political right, particularly in terms of being ...

groups RE disappeared in April 1937 with the formation of the

Falange Española Tradicionalista y de las Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional-Sindicalista The Falange Española Tradicionalista y de las Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional Sindicalista (FET y de las JONS; ), frequently shortened to just "FET", was the sole legal party of the Francoist regime in Spain. It was created by General Francisco F ...

. Recognising that his power base was flimsy at best Goicoechea immediately accepted the decree and dissolved RE.Preston, ''Franco'', p. 271

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Renovacion Espanola 1933 establishments in Spain 1937 disestablishments in Spain Alfonsism Catholic political parties Defunct Christian political parties Defunct far-right parties Far-right political parties in Spain Monarchist parties in Spain Political parties disestablished in 1937 Political parties established in 1933 Political parties of the Spanish Civil War