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Spain during this time opened up the slave trade to Havana
On January 15, 1796, the remains of Christopher Columbus were transported to the island from Santo Domingo. They rested here until 1898, when they were transferred to Seville's Cathedral, after Spain's loss of Cuba.
As trade between Caribbean and North American states increased in the early 19th century, Havana became a flourishing and fashionable city. Havana's theaters featured the most distinguished actors of the age, and prosperity among the burgeoning middle-class led to expensive new class -
The Spanish Constitution of 1812 was issued.
It established the principles of universal male suffrage, national sovereignty, constitutional monarchy and freedom of the press, and supported land reform and free enterprise. This constitution, one of the most liberal of its time, was effectively Spain's first (see Constitutions of Spain), given that the Bayonne Statute issued in 1808 under Joseph Bonaparte never entered into effect.
The Constitution never entered fully into effect either: much of Spain was ruled by the French, while the rest -
Spain under the Restoration: The period began.
This was the deliberate rotation of the Liberal and Conservative parties in the government, so no sector of the bourgeoisie felt isolated, and excluded all other parties from the system. This was achieved by electoral fraud. -
The First Spanish Republic was disestablished.
The Constitution of 1876 was written and enforced during the whole restoration. This constitution established Spain as a constitutional monarchy with a bicameral legislature (Cortes Generales), consisting of an upper house (Senate), and a lower house (Congress of Deputies). -
The Second Spanish Republic was established.
Although the monarchists had not lost all their support, the republican and socialist parties won some significant victories in major cities. Street riots ensued, calling for the removal of the monarchy. The army declared that they would not defend the King and on 14 April he fled Spain. The Second Spanish Republic was immediately established under a provisional government led by Niceto Alcalá-Zamora. -
Spain under the Restoration: The period ended.
Alfonso XIII, in an attempt to return gradually to the previous system and restore his prestige, called on General Dámaso Berenguer to form a government. This failed utterly, as the King was considered a supporter of the dictatorship, and more and more political forces called for the establishment of a republic. Berenguer resigned and the King gave the government to Admiral Juan Bautista Aznar. -
Spanish Civil War (to 1939)
The Spanish Civil War[nb 2] was fought from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939 between the Republicans, who were loyal to the established Spanish Republic, and the Nationalists, a rebel group led by General Francisco Franco. The Nationalists prevailed, and Franco ruled Spain for the next 36 years, from 1939 until his death in 1975. -
Bombing of Guernica: The bombing took place.
The bombing was the subject of a famous anti-war painting by Pablo Picasso. It was also depicted in a woodcut by the German artist Heinz Kiwitz,[7] who was later killed fighting in the International Brigades.[8] The bombing shocked and inspired many other artists, including a sculpture by René Iché, one of the first electroacoustic music pieces by Patrick Ascione, of a musical composition by René-Louis Baron and a poem by Paul Eluard (Victory of Guernica). There is also a short film from 1950. -
Spanish Civil War, 1938–1939: The war began
The Battle of Teruel was an important confrontation between Nationalists and Republicans. The city belonged to the Republicans at the beginning of the battle, but the Nationalists conquered it in January. The Republican government launched an offensive and recovered the city, however the Nationalists finally conquered it for good by February 22. On April 14, the Nationalists broke through to the Mediterranean Sea during the Aragon Offensive, cutting the government-held portion of Spain in two. -
Spain under Franco: The period began
The Francoists took control of Spain through a comprehensive and methodical war of attrition (guerra de desgaste) which involved the imprisonment and executions of Spaniards found guilty of supporting the values promoted (at least in theory) by the Republic - regional autonomy, liberal or social democracy, free elections and women's rights.[15][16] The rightists considered these "enemy elements" to comprise an "anti-Spain" that was the product of a "Judeo-Masonic" conspiracy. -
The Second Spanish Republic was disestablished.
t the end of the Spanish Civil War, according to the regime's own figures, there were more than 270,000 men and women held in prisons and some 500,000 had fled into exile. Large numbers of those captured were returned to Spain or interned in Nazi concentration camps as stateless enemies. Between six and seven thousand exiles from Spain died in Mauthausen. It has been estimated that more than 200,000 Spaniards died in the first years of the dictatorship, from 1940–42. -
Spain under Franco: The period ended.
Franco was to be succeeded by his Prime Minister Luis Carrero Blanco as head of government with the intention of continuing the Francoist regime, but those hopes ended with his 1973 assassination. With the death of Franco on 20 November 1975, Juan Carlos became the King of Spain. He initiated the country's subsequent transition to democracy, ending with Spain becoming a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament. -
The Green March forced Spain to hand over its last remaining colonial possession, Spanish Sahara, to Morocco.
was a strategic mass demonstration in November 1975, coordinated by the Moroccan government, to force Spain to hand over the disputed, autonomous semi-metropolitan Spanish Province of Sahara to Morocco. The demonstration of some 350,000 Moroccans advanced several miles into the Western Sahara territory, escorted by near 20,000 Moroccan troops, and meeting very little response by the Sahrawi Polisario Front. -
History of Spain (1975–present): The period began.
For all intents and purposes, the history of modern Spain began with the death of dictator Francisco Franco on the 20 November 1975, the accession of King Juan Carlos I to the throne and the establishment of the parliamentary monarchy. In 1978, the current Spanish Constitution of 1978 was signed and the status of Spain's autonomous entities (autonomías) was defined. -
Spanish transition to democracy: The transition began
The transition was an ambitious plan that counted on ample support both within and outside of Spain. Western governments, headed by the United States, now favored a Spanish constitutional monarchy, as did many Spanish and international liberal capitalists. Nevertheless, the transition proved challenging, as the spectre of the Civil War (1936–1939) still haunted Spain. Francoists on the far right enjoyed considerable support within the Spanish Army. -
The Spanish Constitution of 1978 was issued.
A seven-member panel was selected among the elected members of the Cortes to work on a draft of the Constitution to be submitted to the body. These came to be known, as the media put it, as the padres de la Constitución or "fathers of the Constitution". The constitution was approved by the Cortes Generales on 31 October 1978, and by the Spanish people in a referendum on 6 December 1978. 88% of voters supported the new constitution. -
2004 Madrid train bombings: Madrid train bombings killed one hundred and ninety-one and injured over two thousand. Prime Minister José María Aznar blamed the Basque terrorists ETA
three days before Spain's general elections and two and a half years after the September 11 attacks in the United States. The explosions killed 191 people and wounded 1,800.The official investigation by the Spanish judiciary found that the attacks were directed by an al-Qaeda-inspired terrorist cell,although no direct al-Qaeda participation has been established.Though they had no role in the planning or implementation,the Spanish miners who sold the explosives to the terrorists were arrested to -
Aznar's People's Party lost an election after the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero promised to withdraw Spanish troops from Iraq
The PP was until November 2011 the largest opposition party in the Congress of Deputies, with 153 out of 350 deputies, and the largest party represented in the Senate, with 101 out of 208 senators. Its youth organization is New Generations of the People’s Party of Spain (NNGG). In the elections of November 2011 the PP won a majority with 186 seats in the Deputies. -
2006 Madrid Barajas International Airport bombing: A bombing by ETA ended an active ceasefire and peace negotiations.
a van bomb exploded in the Terminal 4 parking area at the Madrid-Barajas Airport in Spain, killing two and injuring 52.The bombing ended a nine-month ceasefire declared by the armed organisation and prompted the government to halt plans for negotiations with the organisation. Despite the attack, ETA claimed that the ceasefire was still in place and regretted the death of civilians. The organisation eventually announced the end of the ceasefire in June 2007. -
Moroccan national Jamal Zougam was found guilty of the 2004 train bombings in Madrid.
accused of multiple counts of murder, attempted murder, stealing a vehicle, belonging to a terrorist organisation and four counts of carrying out terrorist acts. He is believed to be the person who sold telephones which were used to detonate the bombs in the attack.He also reportedly helped construct the bombs. He'll be in jail forever.
