Alfonso XII of Spain - A Split Nation

A Split Nation

The first Spanish Constitution was in 1812. The first article said "the Spanish Nation is comprised of the Spaniards from both sides of the Atlantic". Modern Latin America was not a British-style system of overseas colonies. It was not an overseas possession but national soil, much like Alaska or Hawaii are US National soil despite being 'discontinuous'. The Indies were administered as a federation of commonwealth kingdoms fashioned after the Aragonite Crown, but united under the Castilian system America was divided in 4 kingdoms, and Autonomous 5 Captainships autonomous within those kingdoms. There were administrative border overlaps in civil, military, ecclesiastical and judicial affairs. I.e. Venezuela was judicially dependent on the High Court of Santo Domingo, ecclesiastically dependent on the Bishopric of Puerto Rico, militarily dependent on the Budget from New Granada (Bogota), administratively autonomous but overseen by the Viceroy of New Granada and the Bogota Presidency.

Mexico and Peru were kingdoms fashioned under the respectively Aztec and Inca laws and borders. They expanded under Spanish regency to encompass half of North America and half of South America. They were granted sovereignty in 1717. In English terms it would be similar to the Canadian or Australian commonwealth status of the 20th century. The president of the Mexico City and Lima Audiencia, was the Prime Minister, and the viceroys represented the Crown.

Dependent of the kingdom of Mexico/New Spain was: 1. the Captainship General of Guatemala, encompassing all of Central America excluding Panama. 2. The Captainship General of Cuba, encompassing Cuba and the governorships of Florida (safe the English occupation between 1763–83), Santo Domingo (until 1795), Puerto Rico, and the entire Louisiana Territory (1763–1803) 3. The Captainship general of the Philippines, including that Archipelago, the Marianas, Carolinas, Guam and Palau.

The Kingdom of Peru was the entire South American Sub-continent. But in 1736, the viceroyalty of New Granada was incorporated as a separate administration. In 1776, the viceroyalty of Rio de la Plata, was segregated and incorporated. Dependent on the Kingdom of Peru was the Captainship General of Chile

New Granada, with the vice regal capital at Bogota, encompassed modern day Colombia, Ecuador and Panama. Dependent of New Granada the Captainship General of Venezuela.

Rio de la Plata, with the vice regal capital in Buenos Aires, encompassed modern day Argentina, Uruguay Paraguay and Bolivia.

All kingdoms and captainships had full representation in the Cortes Españolas, the new Constitutional Parliament. Spain had 9 Latin-American prime ministers during the 19th century, and over a dozen Latin-American Speakers of Parliament.

The Issue was that the Criollos, or Spaniards born, raised or residing in the Latin-American kingdoms, were not in agreement. Some wanted the modern liberal constitutional system, some wanted the continuance of the Ancien Régime, some wanted independence. Within those seeking independence there were several parties. In Peru and Rio de la Plata many powerful figures proposed an American Monarchy such as those who wanted an independent Peruvian king of the still alive Inca Royal House, and those who requested a Prince of the Spanish house of Bourbon to come and rule directly in Lima, Mexico City or Bogota, as the Portuguese House of Orleans-Braganza had done in Rio de Janeiro. i.e. The 1813 Mexican constitutional project of the Kingdom of Anahuac, a non-Spanish Mexican kingdom.

Some others, like in Europe wanted republican independence as the French and Americans. But many Criollos did not want to lose the class privileges, in any new republics, and the most among the coloured majorities (Indians, blacks and mixed-bloods) did not want to lose the backing that they had from the Crown and Catholic Church. Such backing guaranteed the ownership of their ancestral lands, commons, and welfare.

The Napoleonic and Post-Napoleonic years pushed all sides in the Spains (both sides f the Atlantic) into civil and military strife in 1810. It continued until 1880. Both sides of the Atlantic filled with economic and political refugees from the other side.

In European Spain, or just "the Peninsula" in the jargon of the Spains, after economic and human ravages of the Napoleonic Invasion (1808) and the War of Liberation (1808–1814) there ensued the aforementioned Latinamerican conflicts, in addition to the Carlist wars, the liberal-conservative wars, and the bleeding of people and resources into Latin America. There was an additional republican secessionist process in the Basque Country, Catalonia, Galicia, a Cantonal republican uprising in Murcia and Andalucía, and a constant political tug of war between the Antillean Criollo Spaniards (Cuban and Puerto Rican) abolitionists and slavers.

(ref.http://www.artehistoria.jcyl.es; Enciclopedia Espasa-Calpe: Historia de España)

When Queen Isabella and her husband were forced to leave Spain by the Revolution of 1868, Alfonso accompanied them to Paris. From there, he was sent to the Theresianum at Vienna to continue his studies. On 25 June 1870, he was recalled to Paris, where his mother abdicated in his favour, in the presence of a number of Spanish nobles who had tied their fortunes to that of the exiled queen. He assumed the title of Alfonso XII, for although no King of united Spain had borne the name "Alfonso XI", the Spanish monarchy was regarded as continuous with the more ancient monarchy represented by the 11 kings of Asturias, León and Castile also named Alfonso.