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Spain The African War and the Authoritarian Regime of Miguel Primo de Rivera
Spain was neutral in World War I, but the Spanish army
was
constantly engaged from 1909 to 1926 against Abd al Krim's
Riff
Berbers in Morocco, where Spain had joined France in
proclaiming
a protectorate. Successive civilian governments in Spain
allowed
the war to continue, but they refused to supply the army
with the
means to win it. Spanish losses were heavy to their fierce
and
skillful enemy, who was equipped with superior weapons.
Riots
against conscription for the African war spread disorder
throughout the country, and opposition to the war was
often
expressed in church burnings. Officers, who often had
served in
Morocco, formed juntas to register complaints that were
just
short of pronunciamientos against wartime
inflation, low
fixed salaries for the military, alleged civilian
corruption, and
inadequate and scarce equipment.
Conditions in Morocco, increased anarchist and
communist
terrorism, industrial unrest, and the effects of the
postwar
economic slump prompted the pronunciamiento that
brought a
general officer, Miguel Primo de Rivera (in power,
1923-30), into
office. His authoritarian regime originally enjoyed wide
support
in much of the country and had the confidence of the king
and the
loyalty of the army. The government lacked an ideological
foundation, however; its mandate was based on general
disillusionment with both the parliamentary government and
the
extreme partisan politics of the previous period.
Once in power, Primo de Rivera dissolved parliament and
ruled
through directorates and the aid of the military until
1930. His
regime sponsored public works to curb unemployment.
Protectionism
and state control of the economy led to a temporary
economic
recovery. A better led and better supplied army brought
the
African war to a successful conclusion in 1926.
The precipitous economic decline in 1930 undercut
support for
the government from special-interest groups. For seven
years,
Primo de Rivera remained a man on horseback. He
established no
new system to replace parliamentary government. Criticism
from
academics mounted. Bankers expressed disappointment at the
state
loans that his government had tried to float. An attempt
to
reform the promotion system cost him the support of the
army.
This loss of army support caused him to lose the support
of the
king. Primo de Rivera resigned and died shortly afterward
in
exile.
Data as of December 1988
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